In the blink of an eye, two weeks passed.
This day was the day the martial examination results were announced.
Morning light tore through the dense green mist of the Ten Thousand Mountains.
Then, at astonishing speed, it swept from the foothills to the mountaintops, spilling into every ravine.
Yellow Snake County, a county town nestled within the Ten Thousand Mountains, rang with the clamor of gongs and drums at the border between the inner and outer counties.
At a vast martial training ground at the border between the county town and the outer county, there was a sea of people.
Major martial academies, great powers, common folk, martial artists, hawkers, peddlers, and children of prominent families all packed the place.
With November approaching, the Ten Thousand Mountains had still entered early winter. Though the sun shone brightly today, every breath still carried waves of chill.
Yet all of it was drowned beneath the surging clamor from the training ground.
At the center of the announcement area stood a three-zhang-tall pavilion for displaying the golden plaque, with red lanterns hanging around it.
On both sides of the pavilion stood burly yamen guards armed with sabers, prepared in case anyone rushed forward to make trouble or tamper with the list when it was posted.
"Nearly ten thousand took the examination, yet not only did the number of Martial Scholars fail to increase, it actually dropped to one hundred."
"Who says otherwise? Ten first-class candidates, twenty second-class, thirty third-class, and forty in the final fourth class. But isn't the chance of getting selected far too slim?"
"Xu'er, they say there are only one hundred Martial Scholar slots this year. Can you truly rank among the best?"
Duan Jiantao had come with his second son Duan Tao, his daughter-in-law Madam Liu, and his