At the various Martial Halls, who didn't know that there were a few lucky Martial Scholars this year?
They'd ridden their luck with the draw all the way up, picking nothing but rotten melons and cracked dates for opponents.
In everyone's eyes, Li Chuan was one of them.
After all, three of his four opponents had been unimpressive.
The only one who'd seemed threatening was Wu Yanshu, who'd failed the exam last year.
Even then, the two had fought until the very end before a winner was decided.
At least in the eyes of the people from Gan Yun Martial Hall, the two were evenly matched, with little to choose between them.
He hardly deserved a rank of thirty-sixth.
"Still, with Brother Li ranked thirty-sixth, reaching the top thirty shouldn't be difficult." Li Danyi offered him a compliment.
Li Chuan glanced at him, silently cursing him as a rotten egg.
He'd said only a few words, yet he was already eager to puff Li Chuan up.
His underhanded tricks were leagues ahead of Wu Jingyi's.
But putting all that aside, the rewards at the Gathering of Heroes did look tempting.
Just making the top thirty would earn him ten Blood-Strengthening Pills, almost two months' worth.
That would speed up his cultivation considerably!
But when he heard that the top ten would be granted an audience with the County Magistrate, Li Chuan sensed something was amiss.
Anning County seemed calm on the surface, but currents were churning beneath.
Contact with the County Magistrate could easily be seen as taking sides.
With the situation still unclear, choosing a side rashly meant facing unpredictable risks!
A cautious man by nature, he wouldn't casually put himself in such a position.
Not even for rewards that seemed so generous.
Who could say those pills wouldn't