Zhang Yu walked along the long corridor. His every step was very steady, and he did not change his position from beginning to end.
He walked all the way to the Great Council Hall. Under the gazes of the many people seated on the two sides, he came to the center of the hall and stood there. Then, he raised his eyes and put his palms together, bowing.
From his posture to his bearing, this bow was impeccable.
It was the most solemn and graceful bow of Tianxia.
At this moment, everyone had a clear view of his appearance. They felt that his spirit was empty, his energy was clear, and he was dignified. Especially when he stood there, his posture was tall and straight, and there was a hazy jade light surrounding him. The azure light was glistening, and he was like an immortal.
The vast majority of the people present had never seen him before. They had only heard of his reputation, but when they saw him now, their hearts were filled with astonishment. They had all heard that Tianxia had a true immortal, but they had never seen him before. They could only get a glimpse of his demeanor from past portraits. But when they saw Zhang Yu, they inexplicably felt that if there was a true immortal, he should look like this, right?
Commandant An Youting looked at Zhang Yu. This was also the first time he had seen the mister that Yang Ying spoke of. After sizing him up for a while, he asked a capable middle-aged man beside him, "This Zhang Canzhi is a Xuanxiu. He has killed several EsGods before. An Zhu, you are also someone who has donned the divine robe and have fought with Ning Kunlun before. What do you think of his strength?"
An Zhu thought for a moment and hesitated. Then, he cupped his fists and replied, "Commandant, his Heart Light operates freely and is not tainted in the slightest. I cannot see through him."
An Youting calmly said, "In other words, his strength might be higher than yours?"
An Zhu honestly replied, "Commandant, we have not fought before, so it is hard to say. In a battle of life and death, the stronger person will not necessarily win."
An Youting did not say anything else.
At this moment, Kuang Gong, who was sitting at the head of the table, also turned his head to size up Zhang Yu several times. However, compared to the appearance that ordinary people paid the most attention to, he paid more attention to a person's aura and bearing.
The majority of the upper echelon of the protectorate had been gathered here, and each of them wielded immense authority. An ordinary person would inevitably feel a great deal of pressure under the gazes of these people.
Of the three candidates who came in before, even the one who performed the best, under this type of situation, would more or less behave a bit unnaturally.
However, he noticed that Zhang Yu treated all of this as if it was normal, and he could be said to be extremely composed. However, when he thought about how this person was also a Mystic and had fought with EsGod several times, his will and mind must have been tempered by something inhuman. Thus, he was able to understand why this was the case.
However, he felt that Zhang Yu had a familiar temperament, as if he had seen it on someone before.
He recalled that they seemed to be the same people he had met at the Battle of the Honghe Pass sixty years ago.
However, those people were cold and indifferent, as if they didn't care about anything in the world. Zhang Yu was different from them …
"Kuang Gong? Kuang Gong? "
Kuang Gong heard someone calling him and suddenly came back to his senses. He realized that it was a scholar with a long beard who had called him. He laughed self-deprecatingly and said, "I'm getting old, so it's easy for me to get distracted."
The scholar who called him said, "Kuang Gong must be joking. I see that Kuang Gong's body is still very healthy."
Kuang Gong laughed and looked around before asking, "You should be here for the consultation, right?"
"Yes."
The long-bearded Xia Shi said, "Teacher Zhang is from Taiyang Academy. Therefore, for the sake of fairness, we have selected the Academy Head from Linzhi, Ningguang, and Xuancheng Academies to conduct this inquiry. Does Master Kuang have any other suggestions?"
Kuang Gong shook his head and said, "Don't worry about the opinions of us old fellows. Just do as we've arranged."
The long-bearded Xia Shi nodded and called a civil servant over. After giving him a few instructions, the civil servant clasped his hands and went to a seat in the corner. He bowed to a handsome man in his thirties and said a few words in front of him.
The handsome man nodded and stood up from his seat. He walked to the aisle and faced Zhang Yu. He clasped his hands and bowed, "Teacher Zhang, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Linzhi Academy's scholar, Shang Yue."
Zhang Yu raised his sleeves and bowed back, "Taiyang Academy's scholar, Zhang Yu."
Shang Xueling put down his hand and chuckled. "I heard that Principal Zhang's specialty is the study of ancient antiquity, and it just so happens that I happen to be an expert in this field as well. Thus, I'll be in charge of this consultation. If I offend you in any way, I hope that Principal Zhang can forgive me."
Zhang Yu said calmly, "You're too kind."
Shang Xueling glanced at him and asked, "Teacher Zhang, I heard that you recommended yourself to the academy. May I know which famous teacher you're studying under?"
Zhang Yu replied, "My teacher isn't a famous teacher, and he's not very famous."
"So that's the case."
Shang Xueling nodded and smiled. He didn't continue asking the question. Instead, he took a few steps to the side and looked at the seats. He said, "For those of us who specialize in the study of ancient antiquities, what we need to study the most is the ancient language and writing. This is because only by understanding these can we understand the ancient texts and understand the content hidden within."
He turned around and looked at Zhang Yu, "I heard that Teacher Zhang is talented in the field of language. Previously, you even went to the Southern Region and successfully persuaded a barbarian tribe to submit to the Governor-General Manor. Therefore, in this consultation, I'll ask about the language and writing."
Zhang Yu nodded and said, "Shang Xueling, feel free to speak."
Shang Xueling was clearly prepared. He took out a scroll from his sleeve and passed it to Zhang Yu with both hands. With a smile on his face, he said, "Teacher Zhang, please enlighten me."
Zhang Yu took the scroll and unfurled it. What appeared before his eyes was a 'secret text' composed of many symbols and twisted words. He could immediately tell that it was some kind of code that involved many ancient languages.
However, he found it a little strange. Since the consultation was a test of one's knowledge, it was also a part of communication. Logically speaking, Shang Xueling shouldn't have taken out these unaltered books. Instead, he should have used his own understanding and interpretation of these words to ask Zhang Xuan to answer his questions. From there, he could elicit Zhang Xuan's opinion. If there was a difference in opinion, both sides could express their own opinions and debate it.
But now, it had become purely a question to answer. It could be said to be blunt and superficial.
Ever since Zhang Xuan entered the administrative office, he hadn't taken the initiative to use his Heart Lake. This was because Xuanxiu, who had grasped the Heart Light, was here as well. If he didn't do so, it would be disadvantageous to the consultation. However, when he came into close contact with Shang Xueling earlier, he could feel that when Shang Xueling passed the scroll to him, there was an instant of excitement and anticipation in his heart.
His sharp senses told him that these words could be useful to someone. Perhaps, even Shang Xueling himself wasn't completely clear about it. Thus, he wanted to use this opportunity to obtain an answer from him.
If he could answer the question, he would be helping Shang Xueling. If he couldn't answer the question, he would be stumped by Shang Xueling.
Using public power for personal gain without leaving any traces behind, this person's calculations could be said to be extremely good.
Zhang Xuan definitely couldn't let Shang Xueling do as he wished. Thus, he changed his mind and raised the scroll in his hand slightly higher. "But may I know who will be the judge here? Is it just Shang Xueling alone? "
Shang Xueling was both the questioner and the judge. If it was just Shang Xueling alone, it would obviously be inappropriate.
Among the people at the table, an old man spoke up. "This old man is Yu Kangzhi. I have some knowledge of the ancient language. Although it's not as good as Qiu Shang's, it can still be considered passable. I can barely be considered a judge."
Zhang Yu turned around and clasped his hands at the old man. "Old Mister Yu, I can answer Shang Xueling's question, but I only wish to write on the words. Furthermore, I can't hand it over to Shang Xueling after this and can only hand it over to Old Mister."
Yu Kangzhi asked curiously, "Why is that?"
Zhang Yu replied seriously, "Because this involves the secret text of EsGod. Whether it's shown to everyone or read out loud, it's not appropriate."
Yu Kangzhi was old and shrewd, so he immediately understood what Zhang Xuan meant. Shang Xueling was among those who were unwilling to show it.
Although he was overly cautious, when it came to EsGod, it was undoubtedly right to be more cautious. If there was anyone to blame, it was Shang Xueling's fault. He shouldn't have used such a thing to set a question during an inquiry.
He looked at Shang Xueling and said, "Shang Xueling, do you trust this old man?"
Shang Xueling bowed and said, "How can this student not trust Old Yu's words?"
Yu Kangzhi replied, "Alright. Since you came up with the question, you should have your own answer as well. Write down your answer and compare it with the translation that Zhang shi taught you. Naturally, we'll be able to discern the difference between the two."
Shang Xueling immediately said, "I dare not disobey."
However, in his heart, he couldn't help but feel lucky. Fortunately, he had already translated a portion of those words. Although he couldn't be completely sure of the small portion, it was still within his grasp.
If he were to directly take out something that he didn't understand, he would have suffered a huge setback today.
At this time, Zhang Yu was invited to an empty seat at the side by a servant. There was a brush, ink, paper, and inkstone here. He sat down, picked up the brush, and dipped it in ink. Then, he put the brush on the paper and wrote down what he had seen from the painting.
His brush was extremely fast, and there was a rhythm to it. His movements were just like moving clouds and flowing water. Those who saw him writing didn't know what he was writing, but they couldn't help but feel refreshed.
After a while, he put down the brush and clapped his hands to Yu Kangzhi.
Immediately, a servant picked up the paper and brought it to Yu Kangzhi. When he saw the words, his eyes lit up, and he praised, "Immortal bones and Dao, expressing the heavenly principles. Wonderful!"
However, as he continued to read, he couldn't help but frown.
Some people noticed his expression and couldn't help but whisper among themselves. From time to time, they would glance at Zhang Yu. They saw that his face was calm and indifferent, as if he wasn't worried about himself at all.
Although Shang Xueling was a little slow, he didn't feel the slightest sense of urgency. He slowly finished writing, and only then did he let the servant take it over. He even raised his head and smiled at Zhang Yu in a seemingly friendly manner. On the surface, he didn't lose his elegance at all.
Yu Kangzhi took the answer written by Shang Xueling from the servant's hands. After he read it carefully, he was silent for a moment. Suddenly, he picked up the paper written by Zhang Yu and tore it into pieces on the spot!
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