Above the public fields of Gucheng, amid low-hanging mist, a Flowing Cloud Flying Boat hovered in the air.
A burly man stood at the bow. He wore a light green official robe embroidered with clouds and wheat stalks, a bronze seal and silver cord at his waist, and a woven bamboo cage by his feet.
The cage was no more than a meter wide, yet black birds continuously flew out of it, diving straight toward the fields below.
Beside the cage stood two middle-aged men in the same official robes. The slight difference was that they wore bronze seals with green cords at their waists.
These three were Chen Shijie, the chief official of Gucheng's Ministry of Agriculture, a ninth-rank official.
And Gao Linong and Tang Wanchun, deputy officials in charge of the State Farmlands Office and Equalization Office, respectively, both lower ninth-rank officials.
Behind the three stood another man with an Iron Ruler at his waist. He was a clerk from the Literary Office sent by Gucheng's county magistrate, Wei Wenhe, to record the entire monthly evaluation—a thoroughly disposable tool.
Once the black birds had all flown from the cage, the county office clerk began his routine inquiry. Cupping his hands, he asked, "Lord Chen, what species are these black birds?"
Chen Shijie turned around and returned the gesture. "These birds are called Grain Eating Birds, also known as Vulture Birds. They are commonly seen in the north. I specifically had them transported from my hometown to assess the local Ministry of Agriculture clerks."
The Literary Office clerk asked again, "And what does the Lesser Heat Assessment cover?"
Chen Shijie said, "During the Lesser Heat season, Yuan Rice approaches maturity, and Grain Eating Birds are especially fond of it. This assessment tests how Ministry of Agriculture clerks respond to the natural enemies of farmland."
The Literary Office clerk seemed never to have seen Grain Eating Birds before and cautiously asked, "Is it similar to a Locust Calamity?"
"It will not be that exaggerated. This is only an ordinary assessment, after all."
The Literary Office clerk took out paper and brush from his waist, then asked, "Please provide the detailed grading criteria, Lord Chen."
Chen Shijie pointed at the cage. "The public fields of Gucheng have already been altered to the Great Heat season. The scorching weather will accelerate the depletion of the clerks' vital energy. In one hour, the Grain Eating Birds will return to their cage. Lord Gao, Lord Tang, and I will grade the clerks below."
"It will depend on the damage sustained by the fields each clerk is responsible for."
"Those with less than ten percent of their Yuan Rice destroyed will receive Grade A."
"Those with less than twenty percent destroyed will receive Grade B."
"Those with less than half destroyed will receive grade C."
"If more than half is destroyed, there will be no grade for this assessment. They will be punished by being made to replant the crops and use Nurturing Art to accelerate their growth. If they can make up for the loss, they may receive a supplementary grade C evaluation."
The Literary Office clerk swiftly recorded it all, then cupped his hands. "Thank you for your explanation, my lords. This subordinate shall not disturb the three examiners further."
With that, he turned and entered the cabin, intending to wait for the results before having Chen Shijie approve them and reporting back to the County Office.
Below, the public fields of Gucheng had already descended into chaos.
No one had expected the test to come from the sky—and so suddenly at that!
A vast flock of black birds circled above every plot assigned to the Ministry of Agriculture clerks.
However, the birds merely circled for now and had not yet acted. Chen Shijie was giving the clerks time to react.
Some quick-witted people below had already begun casting spells at once.
Cloudcalling, Windrising, Thunderclap, Rainmaking—it was a lively sight.
Everyone wanted to drive away these uninvited guests as quickly as possible.
"Heavens, I recognize them! They're northern Vulture Birds! They feed exclusively on grain seeds and are incredibly difficult to drive away!"
"Damn those examiners! We don't even have this kind of bird in the south! How can this be used as an exam question?"
"Chen Shijie is from the north. Did he specifically have these things brought here?!"
"The Lesser Heat Assessment tests natural disasters. Why wouldn't Vulture Birds count as a calamity?"
"Ah! My Yuan Rice has only just headed! Get lost, you filthy birds!"
"..."
They fumbled, cursed, cried, and shouted. The public fields, once quiet with people waiting for their assessment, instantly erupted into wails and chaos.
Zhao Xing recognized the Grain Eating Birds immediately, because he knew them all too well!
In his previous life, he had encountered this question when changing professions to Minister of Agriculture. All sorts of "calamities" frequently appeared within his territory, and these things were among the most troublesome.
Of course, they were still far inferior to a Locust Calamity. That was an exterminating disaster—it would gnaw even the roots clean.
"What kind of birds are these? Why can't the wind blow them away, the rain make them stop, or even thunder scare them? Brother Zhao, Qian Dong, how should we deal with this... Brother Zhao?"
Chen Ziyu lowered his head to search for Zhao Xing, only to discover that Zhao Xing had already run to the strawstack area.
Only his voice drifted back through the wind. "Stop standing around! Hurry back to the fields you're each responsible for and think of something! If all else fails, drive them away yourselves! Protect as much as you can!"
Hearing Zhao Xing's voice, Qian Dong and Chen Ziyu swiftly sprang into action as well.
At a time like this, they could not spare a thought for anything else. It was a race against time.
Zhao Xing was immensely glad that he had not slacked off in practicing the Straw Man Art these past few days.
Because for now, Straw Puppets were the most efficient way to deal with them.
You created a Straw Puppet (Repeat Movement) Straw Puppet (Repeat Movement) Proficiency: 854/9999 Effect: Acts upon command, repeating endlessly. Every tree and bush an enemy proficiency +1 You created a Straw Puppet (Repeat Movement) Straw Puppet (Repeat Movement) Proficiency: 864/9999 Effect: Acts upon command, repeating endlessly. Every tree and bush an enemy proficiency +2
The proficiency upper limit for beginner spells was 9999. Every 1000 points of proficiency raised it by one tier, known as a "First-Turn" spell, meaning its power rose to another level.
Because Zhao Xing had learned the Liu Tradition Weaving Method, the Straw Puppets he made granted high proficiency, though he had not yet reached the First-Turn level.
But what he needed now was quantity, not quality.
"Faster, faster, faster..."
Zhao Xing's hands moved so quickly they nearly blurred. Since taking the Dao Embryo Pill, his vital energy had grown day by day, and his physique had improved greatly as well. Before long, the strawstack in front of him visibly shrank, while one Straw Puppet after another began running toward their destination.
One, two, ten, fifteen...
A quarter of an hour passed. The circling black birds descended and began devouring the Yuan Rice.
Zhao Xing's expression changed.
His assigned field covered five mu, nearly half the size of a football field. The number of Straw Puppets he had now was nowhere near enough.
"Cloudcalling!"
Golden light flashed from his fingertips and shot toward the sky above his field. Low clouds and mist spread out, shrouding it.
Zhao Xing was no longer the person he had been a month ago. His Cloudcalling now covered almost most of the five-mu field.
The clouds and mist slightly hindered the Grain Eating Birds, but only slightly.
"Thunderclap!"
Zhao Xing cast another spell. The clouds shifted from white to gray as thunder began to roar and Purple Lightning flickered.
"Boom—"
The descending Grain Eating Birds scattered once more, climbing back into the air.
Yet they still refused to leave. They circled overhead, seemingly searching for an opening to descend through, or perhaps waiting for the thunder to stop.
Zhao Xing did not hesitate any longer and immediately sped up his movements, because he knew this could only delay them for a while. It could not keep them off forever.
The Lesser Heat Assessment had to select outstanding candidates from more than five hundred people. It certainly would not be brief.
At most, only twenty people could receive a Grade A evaluation.
My best previous score was only Grade B. Most of the time, I got upper grade C or grade C, barely passing. There are not many assessments left. Every single one is crucial to me.
As Zhao Xing thought this, he reached out with his hand and grabbed nothing. The pile of straw before him had already been used up.
He immediately rushed to another strawstack and began pulling out straw to weave. Just then, several figures suddenly ran to the same strawstack and began competing with him for "materials."
Zhao Xing was not the only one who had mastered the Straw Man Art and realized how useful it was. Quite a few clerks had caught on.
"Get lost! I spotted this first!"
"What do you mean it's yours? This is public pastureland—"
"Are you leaving or not?!" Zhao Xing picked up a stone and viciously hurled it at the other man. A fierce look appeared on his face, his eyes savage. The player instincts ingrained in his bones from his previous life surfaced without warning.
"Y-you're completely unreasonable..." The man jumped in fright and hurriedly stepped back to dodge it. He had just been about to curse Zhao Xing out, but seeing his vicious face and the sickle in his hand, he instantly realized Zhao Xing was not someone to provoke and could only run away.
Seeing this, the others did not dare approach either. There were still plenty of strawstacks around. There was no need to fight a ruthless man who threw rocks at people the moment they disagreed.
Zhao Xing resumed making Straw Puppets.
Before you continue