The two officials from the Ministry of War stared blankly in that direction, suspecting that they were hallucinating.
The Ministry of War was different from the other five ministries. The officials from the Ministry of Revenue, Ministry of Rites, and other ministries did not have any requirements for cultivation. But the officials of the Ministry of War, from the manager to the assistant minister and minister, were all famous generals who had fought their way out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood?
Their cultivation was not necessarily very high, but their battle experience was not lacking.
On the battlefield, Fu-lu would be used up and Dharma treasures would be destroyed. The only thing that could be relied on was one's own body.
These generals who had retired from the battlefield all had rich experience in close combat. In a true battle of life and death, they could crush those of the same level. But now, two examiners from the Ministry of War were actually at a disadvantage against one examinee.
With their eyesight, they could naturally see that other than suppressing their cultivation to the early fourth level, Director Chen and Minister Counsellor Ma did not hold back in any other aspects.
Dao techniques consumed less Dharmic powers than abhijnas. However, it was not beneficial for Li Mu to maintain it for a long time.
Although these two officials from the Ministry of War had suppressed their cultivation, their mana was much thicker than Li Mu's. Li Mu did not want to continue. He slapped one of the examiners on the chest and kicked the other examiner in the waist. The two of them retreated a few steps before stabilizing themselves.
The two of them were about to advance again when Li Mu stopped. He looked at them and asked, "Is it done?"
The two of them paused and looked at each other. They smiled bitterly and said, "It's done."
After the short battle just now, the two of them were very clear that if they only suppressed their cultivation to the same level as Li Mu, they would not be his match even if they worked together.
From the last blow that he forced the two of them back, he probably still held back in the battle just now.
The director from the Ministry of War looked at the official at the side of the field and said, "Li Mu, results of the combat examination, A +."
A + was the highest result in the combat examination, and also the highest evaluation they gave Li Mu.
Under the influence of the Thousand Illusions Venerable Master, Li Mu pursued the principle of keeping a low profile when it came to his own strength. In the past few months, he had almost never revealed his strength.
But this time was different. It was not that he had to amaze the world with a single brilliant feat in the Martial Trial, but because he was participating in the Imperial Examination this time, not only for himself, but also for the Empress.
Only if his performance was eye-catching enough, the officials in the court, including the people of the world, would not think that the Empress favored a mediocre person who had no good points other than being handsome.
He wanted to prove to the court officials and the world that the empress was not obsessed with his looks.
After a short interlude, the combat test continued.
After seeing how the two examiners had been defeated by Li Mu, the remaining examinees felt less fearful of them.
Perhaps it was just that those people before Li Mu were too weak. Although they were not as good as Li Mu, they would not be ravaged too badly.
Then, they experienced the cruelty of reality.
Perhaps it was because the two examiners were depressed after losing to the examinees, but they did not show any mercy to the following examinees. Even if they suppressed their cultivation to the same level as the examinees, not a single examinee could last more than ten moves from them.
In a group of a hundred examinees, there was only one A +, a dozen B +, and the rest were C + and D grades.
The examination of the other nine groups also ended very quickly.
Among the one thousand examinees, including Li Mu, twelve examinees obtained A + results. Among these twelve examinees, six A +, two A +, and four A +.
The other three examinees who obtained A + also defeated the examiners in their group.
This made Li Mu pay more attention to the other three examinees. Those who could defeat the examiners of the Ministry of War with their own strength without using Fu-lu or Dharma treasures were not to be trifled with.
They were all at the Fourth Realm, and if they were not restrained, their true strength would be above the Fourth Realm.
However, Li Mu did not recognize these three examinees.
He walked to Liu Yi and asked, "Lord Liu, do you know the identities of these three examinees?"
Liu Yi looked in the direction Li Mu was pointing and said, "The two young men are called Zhou Zheng and Zhou Feng. They are the sons of the Minister of War, and the last one is the Crown Prince of the South."
"Zhou Zheng, Zhou Feng …"
Li Mu couldn't help but look at the two young men a few more times. They were the sons of the Minister and the younger brother of the Empress. If the Zhou family could continue to be part of the royal family of the Great Zhou Dynasty, one of them would be the future Emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty.
Similarly, if the Xiao Family regained power, the Crown Prince of the South would be one of the successors to the throne.
Although the former Emperor had many concubines, he only had one son with the Empress and one daughter with the Imperial Noble Consort. They were the deceased Crown Prince and the current Princess Yunyang.
It was said that this was because something went wrong with his cultivation in his early years, and he was devoured by the world and lost his fertility.
Even in this world, infertility was a problem for many people.
As such, according to the rules of the past, if the Emperor did not have a son, he would have to choose one from the next generation of the Imperial Family. In principle, all the Crown Princes had a chance.
In short, these three were the true sons of the Great Zhou's top nobles. They were the true Crown Princes, and were not on the same level as the foppish sons Li Mu had met before.
Li Mu looked at the three and could not help but sigh. "So that's how it is. No wonder their strength is so abnormal."
Liu Yi glanced at him, but did not dare to say anything.
Zhou Zheng, Zhou Feng, and the Crown Prince of the South were powerful, but they had only defeated one examiner, and it was a narrow victory.
Compared to them, the person who had single-handedly suppressed the two examiners and beaten them up was more deserving of this title.
Not only that, but the Zhou brothers and the Crown Prince of Prince Nan were already nearing their thirties. On the other hand, Li Mu was probably not even twenty yet. Not only was he good-looking, he was also well-versed in both the pen and the sword. Even the brightest pearls of the Zhou family and the Xiao family paled in comparison to him.
If Li Mu were a son of the Xiao Clan or the Zhou Clan, he would definitely bring unparalleled pressure to the other clan.
… …
The Martial Trial was a supplement to the Written Trial. It was graded according to 'A', 'B', 'C', and'D 'for the Imperial Court's reference. It would not give a specific ranking to everyone, but it would determine the top three' A's.
This was the ranking for Li Mu, the Zhou brothers, and the Crown Prince of the South.
After a discussion, the officials of the Ministry of War listed the rankings.
Li Mu was first in this Martial Trial, Zhou Zheng was second, then the Crown Prince of the South, and Zhou Feng was last.
Zhou Feng was not satisfied with this result.
He frowned and asked, "The four of us are all 'A's, so why is this person first?"
Although Zhou Zheng and the Crown Prince of the South did not speak, they clearly had the same idea as Zhou Feng.
The Minister of War said, "Li Mu's martial attainment far surpasses that of the other candidates. The three of you are 'A's because you have the strength of' A's. He is' A's' because the highest result in the Martial Trial is' A's'."
Zhou Feng shook his head and said, "I'm afraid that your words will not convince the public."
The Minister of War thought for a moment and said, "If you are not convinced, you can try."
Zhou Feng waved his hand, and a wooden sword flew into his hand.
He pointed the wooden sword at Li Mu and said, "Choose a weapon. Let me see the strength of your first place in the Martial Trial."
Li Mu said, "I don't use a weapon."
Zhou Feng glanced at him and said, "I won't hold back just because you don't use a weapon."
As soon as he finished speaking, his body turned into an afterimage. The wooden sword cut through the air, making a sound like tearing silk as it headed straight for Li Mu.
Li Mu leaned to the side and stretched out his hand. He used two fingers of his right hand to pinch the blade of his sword. His left hand formed a sword finger and pointed at his throat.
Although it was only a finger, if he circulated his mana or used a sword technique, these two fingers could easily pierce through his throat.
Of course, Zhou Feng must have some life-saving means on him. However, this was the Martial Trial. It was a test of martial arts. One could only rely on one's own strength and not external objects. Zhou Feng's challenge to Li Mu was defeated in one move.
The Minister of War looked at Zhou Feng and asked, "Are you convinced?"
Zhou Feng put down his sword and said, "I'm convinced."
The Minister of War looked at Zhou Zheng and the Crown Prince of the South and asked, "What about the two of you?"
Zhou Zheng said, "First place in the Martial Trial. He deserves it."
The Crown Prince of the South shook his head and said, "In terms of martial arts, I'm not his match."
The Minister of War added, "If the Crown Prince is dissatisfied with your ranking, you can also challenge Young Master Zhou Zheng."
The Crown Prince of the South said, "There's no need. I'm not his match either."
In this way, no one objected to the ranking of the four people.
In this imperial examination, the results of the Academic Trial had not been released. The first place in the Martial Trial had already been announced.
The Crown Prince of the South looked at Li Mu's back and said, "I lost to him in the Martial Trial. I can only wait for the Academic Trial to regain my face …"
As a descendant of the Xiao royal family, he had countless resources piled up since he was young. The teacher who taught him martial arts was also a famous general who had been through hundreds of battles. For him to lose to such an unknown person in the martial arts examination was indeed a loss of face.
The Academic Trial was different from the Martial Trial. As a descendant of the royal family, and a descendant of the royal family who was being nurtured as the future Emperor, his strength was in politics. He was also proficient in mathematics and criminal law. Other than the Zhou brothers, he could ignore anyone else.
Liu Yi, who was passing by, heard his words and shook her head slightly.
They still had hope of defeating Li Mu in the Martial Trial. However, they had no chance in the Academic Trial.
This imperial examination was actually unfair to them.
They thought that Li Mu was an examinee like them, but in fact, they were examinees and Li Mu was the examiner …
Reality was often so cruel.
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