The Tale of the Literary Star (Seeking Recommendations and Collections!)

"Shengzhong, this time, it is all thanks to you."

As a Hanlin Scholar and the chief examiner of the Provincial Examination, Scholar Guo had personally come to express his gratitude; by saying these words, he had lowered his status to the absolute minimum.

The main reason was that this incident was truly grave; had the Ming Cult succeeded, his future would have been effectively ruined.

The Imperial Examination was the most vital component for the Great Song to maintain its rule.

Back in the day, Emperor Taizong of Tang perfected the Imperial Examination system and once remarked, "The heroes of the world are now within My snare."

What was a snare? A trap!

This actually revealed the essence of the Imperial Examination: it was a trap designed to keep heroes from rebelling.

During the Tang Dynasty, the number of successful candidates was scarce, and they had to contend with powerful clans in the bureaucracy. By the Song Dynasty, the Emperor vigorously promoted literary pursuits, giving the talented scholars of the world a ladder for advancement; they all went to study the Six Classics diligently, leaving them with no thoughts of rebellion.

In terms of the means to maintain domestic rule, Zhao Kuangyin had indeed taken great pains.

Consequently, the Ming Cult's act of targeting the scholars awaiting the posting of results had thoroughly triggered the nerves of the ruling class.

Now, throughout all of Yong Prefecture, soldiers were patrolling everywhere.

A period of turmoil was about to unfold across the entire Jinghu South Circuit.

As the primary person responsible, Scholar Guo was gripped by lingering fear, and the person he was most grateful to was none other than Huang Shang.

Yet, even so, given his status, he did not necessarily have to pay a personal visit to offer thanks.

The main reason was a rumor spreading widely outside—

Huang Shang was the Literary Star descended to earth!

The Ming Cult thieves had died outside the Examination Hall, and naturally, coroners had examined the bodies. The conclusion reached was that these martial arts ruffians had not been killed by any so-called internal energy, but had perished inexplicably.

Connecting this to the divine might Huang Shang displayed outside the Examination Hall as he stepped forward to berate the thieves, a theory began to circulate: this top-ranking scholar was the Literary Star incarnate, protected by divine power, which was why he could turn the tide when the Examination Hall was attacked.

This filled many with heartfelt awe, Scholar Guo included.

Huang Shang, however, showed not a hint of arrogance: "This is what a student ought to do."

Scholar Guo probed further: "Regarding the Ming Cult thieves, does Shengzhong have any clues?"

Huang Shang shook his head slightly: "This student does not know."

Before the Examination Hall, he had stepped forward to safeguard the security of Yong Prefecture, but he had no intention of participating in the subsequent affairs.

Because he had not yet become a presented scholar or been granted an official post.

He was certainly not a military general.

Doing too much meant making too many mistakes.

Knowing when to advance and when to retreat was often the only way to understand gain and loss.

Seeing Huang Shang return to his usual studies in preparation for the next round of the Departmental Examination, Scholar Guo felt even more admiration. He said no more, rose, and took his leave.

Not long after Scholar Guo departed, Wu Que and Nightingale appeared.

The former's expression had subtly changed, while the latter remained as she always was, though her smile was sweeter, increasingly carrying the air of a star-struck fan.

The speed at which Huang Shang's strength had improved was truly beyond expectations.

Witnessing the battle at the Examination Hall, a question had arisen in Wu Que's mind.

How far was Huang Shang's strength from advancing to the Star-level?

The answer was unsettling.

Huang Shang's future could be vast, but that had to be after the contract was completed.

If Huang Shang were to become the peerless powerhouse from the original plot—a two-star Grandmaster—while still in this world, how many chances would there be to bind him?

It is time to break free.

Keenly sensing the change, Huang Shang knew that from here on, Wu Que would likely stop helping him improve and would instead begin to suppress him.

Facts proved that no Star-level Reincarnator was easy to deal with. Originally, the competition between Wu Que and Nightingale had served his interests.

But soon, the two had joined forces, pulling in the same direction, which was not a good thing for him.

Being too weak did not meet the Reincarnators' needs.

Soaring to the heavens did not meet the Reincarnators' goals either.

The real Huang Shang would never have imagined that the friends he called brothers yesterday were harboring evil intentions today, planning to turn him into a complete puppet.

Huang Shang, however, knew the Reincarnators' demands.

In all fairness, since Wu Que had paid the price of the Bright Jade Art, having such thoughts was completely normal.

However, standing from Huang Shang's perspective, in order to avoid a falling out, he had to find a way to escape.

This was very difficult.

Fortunately, this is the Jinghu South Circuit.

These past few days, Huang Shang had actually been pondering a solution.

Ultimately, he decided to wait and see how things developed.

If his calculations were correct, there was a certain martial arts faction even more anxious than he was.

It was quite possible that someone would come to see him before long.

Following this, Huang Shang continued to review his studies.

The Provincial Examination was merely the first stage of the imperial examinations; two more remained.

The Departmental Examination! The Palace Examination!

Having tasted the benefits of the Provincial Examination, he knew the Literary Qi gained from those two would be even greater.

As long as he passed them successfully, it would mean two unparalleled enhancements.

Among the three examinations, the Departmental Examination was the most difficult and, consequently, the most critical.

If one failed the Departmental Examination, the title of Jieyuan would be meaningless, and one would have to wait another three years to test again.

Therefore, he politely declined all invitations, focusing his entire mind on his studies.

Some people followed the rules and, once rejected, had no other recourse.

Others, however, did not.

One day, while Huang Shang was holding a copy of Spring and Autumn Weighing and reading with deep focus, a noise suddenly came from behind him.

He acted as if he hadn't heard it until a familiar, pungent odor drifted over, and a middle-aged man built like an iron tower stood before him: "Young Master Huang, we meet again!"

The Beggar Sect leader, Wang Jiantong.

Huang Shang gave him a cold glance and ignored him entirely.

Wang Jiantong felt a bit awkward.

If this were someone from the martial arts world, even if there were past grievances, they would still exchange pleasantries.

Yet, Huang Shang was not a martial artist at all, and since they had already formed a grudge, he simply disregarded him.

Wang Jiantong had no choice but to force an awkward yet polite smile: "I hope you can forgive the offenses I committed against you earlier!"

Only then did Huang Shang reply: "There is no need for such words. Your sect frequently violates the law. I am but a humble scholar, currently powerless to change anything, but one day, I will surely purge the chaos from the martial arts world!"

As soon as these words were spoken, Wang Jiantong frowned. Before he could say anything, an old beggar stepped forward, looking coldly at Huang Shang: "Young brat, you have a big mouth!"

In terms of seniority, this man was Wang Jiantong's martial uncle—the very same Elder Xu who had returned from seclusion during the Beggar Sect assembly at Xingzi Forest.

Huang Shang couldn't even be bothered to speak; he just gave him a cold look.

There was no brilliant martial radiance in that gaze, yet Elder Xu felt an indescribable force slam into him. His aged face changed color instantly, and he stumbled back two steps.

Elder Xu was filled with horror, and Wang Jiantong's expression shifted as well.

It was rumored in the outside world that this man was the Literary Star descended to earth. He hadn't believed it at first, but more than two months ago, while investigating the death of Chen Sheng, he had personally examined him. Back then, Huang Shang had been nothing more than a frail scholar, but now...

It wasn't martial arts.

What was it, then?

Could it truly be the divine power of the Literary Star?

Given this, even Wang Jiantong's brash, bandit-like martial arts demeanor subconsciously receded.

Huang Shang, however, had no need for the awe of a few beggars; he looked at the other young beggar who had accompanied Wang Jiantong and Elder Xu.

"Ma Dayuan, is it?"

This future deputy leader, who would eventually earn Wang Jiantong's deep trust, would have been the perfect second-in-command if not for marrying a poisonous woman; he was capable of coordinating everything in an orderly fashion.

Seeing that both Wang Jiantong and Elder Xu were stunned, Ma Dayuan stepped forward and said: "Young Master Huang, now is not the time for resentment. Those who attacked the Examination Hall are all from the Ming Cult, which spread into our Central Plains from Persia. They are not of our kind, and their hearts must be different. We hope the officials can identify the true enemy."

Why did the three of them appear?

The reason was simple.

The Ming Cult was courting death by rebelling, and the Beggar Sect was caught in the crossfire.

There was no help for it; the Ming Cult's lair was too secretive for the imperial court to find.

However, the Beggar Sect's headquarters at Jun Mountain was sitting right there in plain sight.

When the garrison troops couldn't find the Ming Cult thieves and feared the reprimands of their superiors, what could they do?

Use the Beggar Sect as a scapegoat!

The seeds sown in the past were bearing fruit today. In the past, Beggar Sect disciples had treated the laws of the Great Song as nothing, and the government had indeed been unable to do anything about them. The accumulated grievances had finally erupted.

In reality, since Jun Mountain was located in the middle of Dongting Lake, it was easy to defend and hard to attack, and the garrison troops of the Jinghu South Circuit were weaklings, so the Beggar Sect didn't truly fear these soldiers.

But the Beggar Sect was different from the Ming Cult.

Although the Beggar Sect did not agree with the imperial court's weakness and appeasement, they had never thought of rebelling against the court.

No matter how many deep-seated ills the current Great Song court had, it still provided stability and peace. Once chaos and turmoil broke out, it would be the common people who suffered the most.

In troubled times, human life was as worthless as grass.

The Beggar Sect understood this principle well enough.

Therefore, Wang Jiantong was unwilling to clash head-on with the government, as that would only grieve his kin and gladden his enemies.

However, they lacked a channel for reconciliation, and upon learning that the Jieyuan who had blocked the Ming Cult at the Examination Hall that day was none other than Huang Shang, whom they had encountered in the past, they came seeking him out.

Now that the tides had turned, Wang Jiantong took a deep breath, bowed, and said, "I hope Young Master Huang can cast aside past grievances!"

Huang Shang appreciated that Wang Jiantong would rather swallow his pride than see internal strife, so he replied, "My position is humble and my words carry little weight; I fear it would be difficult to change the will of those above."

Just as disappointment appeared on the faces of Wang Jiantong and his two companions, he changed his tone: "However, I have two friends who are highly skilled in martial arts. They have ways to track the whereabouts of the Ming Cult heretics, so the two of you could join forces!"

(Seeking recommendation votes for Monday!)

Thanks to book friends "Heaven Crystal Hun Tian Treasure Mirror," "Left Path Emperor," "Dragon Rising to the Clouds," and "Brother Tutu" for their tips.