Reform and Renewal

At that moment, two Daoists arrived in a flash of light and landed before Zhang Sheng and Wei Yuan. The older Daoist glanced at Wei Yuan, then at the book in his hand. "Wei Yuan of Fengyuan Commandery, confirmed. Take him to the dormitory!"

Zhang Sheng froze. "Why does he have to move into the dormitory now?"

Sun Yu had entered the immortal gate a step behind and appeared beside Zhang Sheng. "Don't worry, junior brother. There are many examinees from Fengyuan Commandery this year, so they've made a special rule: as soon as an examinee enters the immortal gate, they must move into the dormitory and may not speak with outsiders again until the examination is over."

Zhang Sheng looked at Sun Yu, then at the two Daoists, then at the countless auspicious beasts of the immortal provinces on the plaza. After a moment's thought, he said gently to Wei Yuan, "Then go. Don't be afraid. Just show them everything you've learned. Leave the rest to your teacher."

Wei Yuan nodded firmly. Born precocious, he already sensed that something was amiss.

Zhang Sheng stepped back. The young Daoist took Wei Yuan by the hand, and with a flicker, they vanished in the blink of an eye. The older Daoist made a checkmark in his book, apologized, and left.

Zhang Sheng's gaze slowly swept over the entire plaza.

Though his Dao Power was sealed, his knowledge remained. From the shapes of the mounts and auspicious beasts alone, he could recognize most of them. The flying boats and immortal carriages came in countless styles, but most bore family crests or clan insignia, many of which Zhang Sheng recognized as well. With a single glance, he spotted seven or eight impressive carriages, belonging either to scions of illustrious clans or to the descendants of sect masters and elders from great immortal sects.

Those two Nine-Colored Treasure Deer from the East Sea couldn't even break into the top five here.

"Junior brother, don't worry," Sun Yu said. "You know the dormitory rules. Besides, with True Persons and Great Scholars watching right now, no one would dare tamper with anything."

"No one would dare tamper with anything?" Zhang Sheng said coolly. "More like there's hardly anyone who wouldn't dare."

Sun Yu acted as if he hadn't heard. "It's not just our Taichu Palace here this time. The Four Saints Academy and the Great Precious Flower Pure Land are here too."

Zhang Sheng immediately thought of the many fearsome fortunes he had seen on the Wushui Heguan Array six years ago. Six years had passed; those fortunes should have begun to join with their destined people, giving rise to all kinds of extraordinary talents. It seemed the great powers above had already foreseen this. Three of the four immortal palaces had sent representatives, while countless Grotto-Heavens and Blessed Lands had come as well, all ready to vie for the Children of Fortune.

Yet the thought of those fortunes left Zhang Sheng feeling strange. If the immortal sects took these people back, what would King Ji think? And what would Emperor Tang think?

At that moment, the white jade boat from the East Sea finally came to a stop. A line of people filed down from it, clustering around a boy like stars around the moon. He looked eight or nine years old, with dark skin, slightly curled hair, and several tiny pearl-colored scales at his throat, shielding his windpipe. His pupils were a brilliant amber. One look at him made it clear he was of pure East Sea blood; his eyes were proof enough.

Seeing the boy's appearance, Zhang Sheng's expression shifted. "Was he born in Fengyuan Commandery?"

The Immortal Sect Unified Examination had always required examinees to have a blood relative who had lived in the commandery for three generations in order to sit the exam there. Otherwise, they had to take it in their ancestral province or commandery. This rule had always been strictly enforced, without exception. The East Sea was at least hundreds of thousands of miles from Yongzhou, if not a million. It might have made sense for the Yan Family to send a mixed-blood member of a collateral branch, but how could a pure-blood scion of the main line have any connection to Fengyuan Commandery?

Sun Yu gazed at the tip of his nose, his voice perfectly steady. "He was indeed born in Fengyuan Commandery."

Zhang Sheng sneered. "The Yan Family of the East Sea, the grand elder of the Bishui Liushang Sect, and the Little Sage of the Shiming Academy—those three are hundreds of thousands of miles from Fengyuan at the nearest, and millions of miles at the farthest. They all have blood relatives here within three generations?"

Sun Yu sighed. "They do. I've heard that some of those relatives only returned to their ancestral clans last month. But there are witnesses and physical evidence, so those are all genuine blood relatives. You can't overturn it, junior brother."

Sun Yu stressed the words "genuine blood relatives." It was already no small thing for him to say this much. If the relevant noble clans and aristocratic families heard his remarks, he'd have made enemies of them for life.

A mocking look crossed Zhang Sheng's face. "They're not even bothering to hide it anymore?"

Sun Yu sighed. "Hasn't it always been this way? Come with me to the Qianxin Hall first. It'll be easier to talk there. Also, the rules for this year's Fengyuan Commandery examination have been drastically revised. They say they're reforming the old and bringing in the new, so you should read them too."

Zhang Sheng stood his ground until he saw the two Daoists take away the boy from the Yan Family of the East Sea as well. Only then did he leave with Sun Yu.

The young Daoist escorted Wei Yuan to a scenic valley. Rows of two-story buildings stood in the valley. Every room opened onto a corridor, and each door bore a number.

As soon as Wei Yuan entered, one of the numbers lit up.

The young Daoist took a single step with Wei Yuan and arrived outside that room. "This is room seventy-seven. It'll be your number for the duration of the examination. Before the exam, you're free to move about the dormitory, and you may run into other examinees. You can talk, but remember: don't reveal your name or identity. If you're caught, you'll be severely punished. Understand?"

Wei Yuan nodded.

The young Daoist opened the door and went in. The room was simple but elegant: a bed, a desk, and a chair, along with a sandalwood flower stand. On it sat a fruit tree about the size of an arm, laden with golden fruit that gave off a faint, delicate fragrance.

"This is a Chonglou Fruit Tree. It can clear your thoughts and steady your mind. Don't eat the fruit. Eating it will kill you."

"This is a North Sea Ice Pear Bed. Sleeping on it can banish inner demons and nourish your Primordial Spirit. You haven't begun cultivating, so you won't get those benefits. But sleeping on it for an hour every day will restore your energy."

"This is a Tianji Desk, this is a Lihuo Inkstone, and this is a Shuiyuan Brush..."

After explaining the function of each item in the room, the young Daoist said, "The rules for the examination will be distributed at the hour of the Rooster. Read them carefully so you won't be caught off guard. The Dao Assessment starts first thing tomorrow morning, so don't be late."

Having finished his instructions, the young Daoist left through the door.

Wei Yuan suddenly noticed a booklet by the doorway, as if the young Daoist had accidentally left it behind. He picked it up and saw the words "Great Tang Immortal Sect Admission Examination Rules" on the cover.

The rules weren't supposed to be distributed until the hour of the Rooster. It was only just past noon, with a full two hours remaining. Wei Yuan understood: the young Daoist had quietly given him a small advantage.

Wei Yuan sat down at the desk and began to read the rules. As he went on, he grew puzzled. The examination rules in the booklet differed greatly from what Zhang Sheng had told him.

According to Zhang Sheng, the Immortal Sect Unified Examination consisted of two parts: the Dao Assessment and the Literary Assessment. The Dao Assessment tested one's cultivation aptitude, foundation, and whether one had fortune on one's side. The Literary Assessment examined all manner of worldly affairs, including writing, history, policy essays, and the Art of War. Usually, candidates received two or three prompts and wrote an essay for each.

The Literary Assessment didn't just judge whether an answer was correct; it also tested insight. A candidate might take an extreme position, but as long as the argument was original and self-consistent, they could earn points for insight.

But the rules in Wei Yuan's hands stated that, in addition to the Dao Assessment and Literary Assessment, this year would include a Martial Assessment. The portions of the Dao Assessment that tested one's foundation and fortune had also been divided into finer categories, with more detailed grades and corresponding scores for each.

With the addition of the Martial Assessment, the weighting of the tests in the overall evaluation had changed to forty percent for the Dao Assessment, thirty percent for the Literary Assessment, and thirty percent for the Martial Assessment. Previously, the weighting had been sixty percent for the Dao Assessment and forty percent for the Literary Assessment.

The three tests would no longer use the old, vague ranking system of Heaven, Earth, and Human grades. Instead, they would use a point system: forty points for the Dao Assessment, and thirty each for the Literary and Martial Assessments, for a total of one hundred. The final rankings would be determined by the total score.

Zhang Sheng had previously said that Fengyuan Commandery was remote and had just suffered a great disaster, with countless dead, so there would be no more than twenty examinees this year. Yet even judging by the dormitory rooms alone, there were well over two hundred people. From his brief glimpse after entering the immortal gate, Wei Yuan had also seen that countless illustrious figures had arrived. Clearly, they were all here for the examination.

With the rules drastically revised and competition fiercer than ever, Wei Yuan faintly felt leaden clouds gathering overhead. But after three years of studying under Zhang Sheng, he had inherited his teacher's nature: the more setbacks he faced, the braver he became, and he always fought upstream against the current. The pressure was greater than ever, yet Wei Yuan instead grew calm and began studying the rules carefully.

Just as Zhang Sheng had taught him, when great matters arose, one needed to keep a still heart.