Someone saw Tang Thirty-Six hand over a piece of paper to Zhe Xiu, but no one connected it to a banknote. This was because the impression the wolf-tribe youth left on the world couldn't be associated with money, just like Luo Luo and Xuan Yuan Po, even though they had seen it happen, they still found it hard to believe.
Zhe Xiu walked into the Tower of Purging Dust, Zhe Xiu walked out of the Tower of Purging Dust, his opponent did not walk out of the tower. Just like Gou Han Shi, he once again welcomed an undisputed victory, but aside from the result, the process was much more controversial than Gou Han Shi's, because his opponent was once again heavily injured and unable to get up, and was directly sent out of the Education Palace.
The examinees' gazes followed him down the stone steps, arriving before the group from Orthodox Academy by the woodlands.
Tang Thirty-Six was a little speechless, he said: "You registered as a student of Star Seizer Academy, you're still using the fake name of Zhang Ting Tao. That friend is your classmate, do you have to be so heavy-handed?"
Zhe Xiu was silent for a while, as if he didn't understand why Tang Thirty-Six was concerned about this, then he said: "I said I'd fight well."
Tang Thirty-Six's banknote made him very satisfied, that's why he had previously nodded to someone and promised to fight well. To the wolf-tribe youth who didn't understand and didn't care about the ways of the world, fighting well meant fighting with all your strength, then his opponent's fate could be imagined.
"Then what are you doing here?"
The examinees' gazes were focused on the woodlands, this made Tang Thirty-Six feel a little pressured, he didn't want the deal between Orthodox Academy and Zhe Xiu to be known, it had nothing to do with honor, it was purely because he wanted to keep this a secret, Zhe Xiu was a secret that could be bought with money.
Zhe Xiu was now the equivalent of a mercenary for Orthodox Academy, such a powerful mercenary, it was obviously best if no one knew about it.
"I'm here to discuss the price," said Zhe Xiu.
Tang Thirty-Six understood that he was referring to the next match.
Without any surprises, Zhe Xiu was up against Gou Han Shi.
Luo Luo and Xuan Yuan Po lowered their heads and looked at the grass on the ground, not saying a word, hiding their embarrassment.
Chen Chang Sheng didn't, this was his business, if he was going to be ridiculed afterwards, he felt that the target of ridicule should be himself, not Tang Thirty-Six.
"The thing you want, I can't guarantee … whether I have it or not, but I'll do my best to give it to you," he said while looking at Zhe Xiu.
Zhe Xiu stared into his eyes, his expression indifferent, and said: "You must have it."
Chen Chang Sheng said, "If there is, I will give it to you."
Zhexiu was quiet for a very long time, then said, "Yes."
Then he looked at Tang Thirty Six. After a long silence, he said, "Three times?"
Tang Thirty Six paused for a second and then came back to his senses. He suppressed his excitement and said calmly, "No problem."
Zhexiu nodded at him once more, then turned and walked out of the crowd.
"Looks like this guy only knows how to kill and doesn't know how to negotiate."
Tang Thirty Six looked at his back and sighed.
Beating up Gou Han Shi was only three times the price of beating up that Star Seizer Academy examinee. Zhexiu's asking price really surprised him.
Then he remembered something and turned around to look at Chen Chang Sheng. He frowned and asked, "You know what he wants?"
It was obvious that the wolf tribe youngster was in need of money. This was only one of the reasons why he was willing to help the Tradition Academy. The most important reason was that he wanted something from Chen Chang Sheng.
Chen Chang Sheng glanced at Luo Luo and said, "I can roughly guess what he wants, but I'm not sure if I can help him."
…
…
The last match of the quarterfinals was between Luo Luo and the young scholar from Scholartree Manor, Zhong Hui.
As expected of the young genius ranked ninth upon the Proclamation of Azure Clouds. Within the tower, Zhong Hui displayed an extremely strong True Essence cultivation and sword arts, successfully … persisting for the time it takes for half an incense stick to burn.
After the Li Palace clergyman announced the result, Zhong Hui silently left the tower.
Looking at the slightly lonely back of the young scholar from Scholartree Manor, Luo Luo didn't feel anything. She quietly looked at the door, waiting for the arrival of her next opponent.
She didn't leave the tower. She requested to fight the first match of the semifinals, the important figures on the second floor had to give her this bit of face.
The door to the tower closed, after a while, it opened again.
Hearing that creaking sound, Luo Luo walked over and carefully helped her opponent inside.
Her opponent for this round was Chen Chang Sheng.
The floor that had been washed by the rain had some moist sand left on it. The stone steps that leaned against the walls of the round tower could be considered clean and also relatively dry.
Luo Luo helped Chen Chang Sheng to sit on the stone steps and passed him some water, feeding him a mouthful and saying: "How much longer before the medicine's effects disperse?"
Chen Chang Sheng looked at the golden thread that was wrapped around his left hand's ring finger and said: "It's already a bit better, you don't have to worry. If it still doesn't work after a while, I'll think of something."
Luo Luo said: "Then you should rest a bit longer."
Chen Chang Sheng looked towards the second floor, thinking to himself: is this appropriate?
The Tower of Purging Dust is the arena for the Grand Examination, after examinees enter the tower, their minds would be focused on the battle, rarely having the opportunity to take a good look at the tower.
At this time, he could take a good look.
But, he still felt a bit uneasy.
"Will people talk about it?" he asked, looking at Luo Luo.
Luo Luo originally wanted to say that she wasn't afraid of others talking, but thinking of his cautious nature, her eyes turned slightly and she said: "Then let's talk."
What should they talk about? Has the great banyan tree within Orthodox Academy become thicker? Can they still see the general store at the entrance of Hundred Blossoms Lane while standing on the tree's arm? Was the snow accumulated within Heavenly Academy last winter thick?
"Sir, how did you defeat Zhuang Huan Yu?" Luo Luo asked a question that everyone was concerned about.
Chen Chang Sheng thought for a while, then carefully explained the previous duel, not leaving out the majority of the details.
Luo Luo was naturally very shocked, she said with lingering fear: "Fortunately, there was that rain …"
Chen Chang Sheng nodded his head, now that he thought about it, if that cold rain hadn't descended from the sky, even if he hadn't been burnt to death by the Star Brilliance, he would have been heavily injured by the high temperature.
That rain, where did it come from?
"The Education Palace is within His Holiness' Green Leaf World, only His Holiness can make it rain here."
Luo Luo seemed to have thought of something, she stayed silent for a long time, then said: "Sir, this matter seems to be getting more and more complicated."
Chen Chang Sheng remained silent, if the person who had caused that Autumn rain was really the Pope, how could he explain it?
He and Orthodox Academy were the main targets of the Orthodoxy's conservative faction.
Everyone knew that the Orthodoxy's conservative faction, or rather, those important figures loyal to the Imperial Chen family, were targeting Her Divine Majesty and His Holiness.
Why did His Holiness help him? To be more accurate, to save himself?
The entire continent knew, Orthodox Academy's new students, His Eminence's declaration, both contained many hidden problems.
Chen Chang Sheng, as the person involved, was obviously more clear, but he had never thought about this aspect before.
Firstly, it was because he didn't want to think about it, his goal had always been first upon the First Banner, whatever the important figures of the Capital wanted to do, had nothing to do with him.
Secondly, he couldn't understand, the thoughts of those important figures weren't something a youngster like him could guess.
"At least, from the looks of it, it's beneficial for me." Chen Chang Sheng looked at Luo Luo, who had a serious expression, and comforted her.
Luo Luo said: "I think, perhaps we can take advantage of it."
Chen Chang Sheng didn't quite understand, he asked: "How do we take advantage of it?"
Luo Luo's gaze fell upon the sword wounds on his chest, she said: "Later, during the battle, try to take as many risks as possible."
Chen Chang Sheng understood her meaning.
If it was according to Luo Luo's original intention, she definitely wouldn't have suggested that, but since Chen Chang Sheng had to take first upon the First Banner, then it had to be done.
She and Chen Chang Sheng didn't know what those important figures were thinking, but they knew what those important figures had already done.
There were many important figures that wanted Chen Chang Sheng to fail, but there were also many important figures that didn't want Chen Chang Sheng to die.
If His Holiness could cause the Education Palace to rain once, then he could cause more rain.
Therefore, Chen Chang Sheng should take the risk, seeking life in the midst of death, only then, could he borrow the influence of those important figures, or perhaps borrow His Holiness' rain for a few more times.
The so-called borrowing, was taking advantage of the situation.
Luo Luo said uneasily: "But you have to be careful."
Chen Chang Sheng reached out his hand and patted her hair, saying: "Don't worry, nothing will happen to me."
Luo Luo's expression was a little downcast, she said: "I'm sorry, I wasn't able to help you today."
She had pleaded with His Holiness for an entire night, only then could she participate in the Grand Examination, placing had no meaning to her, what she needed to do was to protect and escort Chen Chang Sheng. For example, she had defeated Zhong Hui in the previous round, only then could Chen Chang Sheng sit upon the stone steps and rest, not needing to face the supreme arts of Scholartree Manor with a heavily injured body.
But in her eyes, this didn't mean much.
Her targets were Tian Hai Sheng Xue and Gou Han Shi.
Tian Hai Sheng Xue had withdrawn from the competition because of her, but that still left Gou Han Shi.
… …
… …
The Tower of Purging Dust was very quiet.
Outside of the tower, however, it was very lively, because no one was concerned with the outcome of the match within the tower, everyone knew what Her Highness would do. The examinees formed groups of two or three, discussing the previous match, discussing the possible placings, guessing how strong Chen Chang Sheng was and how many moves he would be able to take from Gou Han Shi.
But as time passed, the Tower of Purging Dust remained quiet, that door still hadn't opened, the examinees began to feel bored from waiting, some of them even began to feel sleepy.
Guan Fei Bai looked towards the tightly shut door of the tower, angrily saying: "What kind of logic is this?"
Liang Ban Hu looked towards the woodlands, shaking his head and sighing: "Even someone like Tang Tang feels embarrassed, Her Highness … how could she be so shameless?"
Gou Han Shi remained silent, thinking about how Orthodox Academy, in order to allow Chen Chang Sheng to place first upon the First Banner, would stop at nothing, that final match probably wouldn't be too simple.
By the woodlands, Xuan Yuan Po was crouching on the ground, looking at something, Luo Luo, who had previously been crouching with him, had now been replaced by Tang Thirty Six. Countless gazes fell upon them, making them feel pressured, embarrassed to raise their heads, too embarrassed to even speak, they could only hum and sing.
… …
… …
"What's this?"
Within the tower, by the window on the second floor, the Archbishop of the Holy Church looked at the youths on the steps, his expression extremely ugly.
Chen Chang Sheng and Luo Luo were chatting, master and disciple huddled together, whispering to each other, the scene was actually very pleasing to the eye, very young and moving.
The problem was, this was the Tower of Purging Dust, the solemn arena for the Grand Examination, not Orthodox Academy's pond, nor the Hundred Herb Garden's melon trellis.
Xue Xing Chuan slightly frowned, saying: "This … isn't appropriate?"
Prince Chen Liu really wanted to laugh, but out of consideration for the feelings of those present, he refrained from doing so.
Mo Yu's face was expressionless, she quietly looked at Chen Chang Sheng and Luo Luo, her brows furrowed with impatience.
Everyone knew what Luo Luo's intentions were, she wanted to turn this match into a time for Chen Chang Sheng to rest and recover from his injuries, naturally, the longer the better. Yet, the entire continent was anxiously awaiting the Grand Examination's final ranking, could it be that however long she and Chen Chang Sheng wanted to rest, the world would have to wait?
The most troublesome issue was, the Grand Examination didn't have any rules to restrict this. Who said that both sides had to fight to the death right from the start? Who said that opponents couldn't appreciate each other's talents and have a chat? Luo Luo and Chen Chang Sheng had countless reasons, or perhaps excuses, to stall for time, turning the match into a chat.
The Archbishop of the Holy Church said angrily: "Your Highness, please hurry up, if you don't act, then the two of you will be judged to be passive and directly eliminated."
The Li Palace clergyman accurately conveyed the Archbishop's message to the youths chatting on the steps.
Luo Luo was very angry, saying: "Can't you see we're accumulating our strength? Who dares to disqualify us? "
The Li Palace clergyman really wanted to twitch his mouth, really wanted to say, Your Highness, do you think the entire world is blind? Accumulating strength for an entire hour, accumulating it to the point where the two of them were shoulder to shoulder? But he didn't dare to say anything.
With a light creaking sound, the window on the second floor was finally pushed open for the first time.
Xue Xing Chuan arrived at the arena, walked in front of Luo Luo, smiled and said a few words in a low voice.
Luo Luo still refused to get up and leave.
Chen Chang Sheng said: "We've rested enough, let's go out together, don't make things difficult for His Excellency."
Luo Luo was the most obedient to him, she also knew that she couldn't occupy the tower for long, so she helped him up and walked out of the tower.
Xue Xing Chuan looked at the backs of the youths, he couldn't help but shake his head, appearing very helpless.
Just like that, the first match of the Grand Examination's semifinals ended.
Her Highness did as everyone expected, directly forfeiting, at the same time earning Chen Chang Sheng precious time to rest and recover.
Chen Chang Sheng entered the finals of the Grand Examination.
He was one step closer to the goal that had once been the laughing stock of the entire continent.
Only, this process seemed a little absurd.
But, he didn't care.
Luo Luo didn't care either.
… …
… …
The further it went, the faster the Grand Examination's matches progressed. This was because the abilities of the two combatants were getting stronger and stronger, even if the difference was only a sliver, victory or defeat would only take a few moves. After the second round, the time required for each match was extremely short, otherwise, it wouldn't have been possible for it to reach the final moment so quickly.
Chen Chang Sheng and Luo Luo's match had taken up a full hour, longer than the previous ten matches combined. Of course, everyone knew that this was a special situation, only someone with a special status like Her Highness could do this.
Yet, just when everyone believed that this would be the longest battle of this year's Grand Examination, the second match between Gou Han Shi and Zhe Xiu in the semifinals, once again brought boundless shock to everyone. This was because this battle had lasted for a very long time, and from the looks of it, it seemed that it would continue for even longer, with a high possibility of surpassing an hour.
Hearing the terrifying sounds that occasionally resounded from within the tower, Tang Thirty Six's expression became more and more serious, the respect in his eyes became more and more concentrated.
He turned towards Chen Chang Sheng and said seriously: "Aside from your life, whatever that wolf cub wants from you, just give it to him."
… …
… …
(I'm really tired, I want a few recommendation tickets from you, just give them to me … …)
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