Thought-Convergent Order? Dragon Qi Manifestation?

Many people shared similar sentiments. On that day, Pang Qianru hosted a banquet for the students, inviting only well-known figures among the candidates. The Pang Residence was well-informed and had ample manpower in the Imperial City, so many of those invited had passed the exam and were now proudly participating in the Palace Examination.

During this period, these people fought in the Military World. Some succeeded, and some failed. The successful ones were able to retain their troops, while the defeated ones left the plains after their defeat and could no longer enter.

Regardless, I gained some Military School knowledge, and I answered the questions with ease today.

Of course, while they were relieved, they didn't say it out loud, but kept it to themselves, treating the Military World as a personal secret.

After all, due to the actions of the Household Ancestor Chen, everyone's memories had changed. They no longer remembered the Military Miscellany, nor did they know about the various anomalies that night. Many people returned to their residences after the banquet, fell asleep, and their souls entered the plains. They were unaware that others could also have a dream, and their faces were also obscured inside, which is why they regarded it as a secret.

Some people secretly observed Qiu Yan, wondering if they could outdo him with the help of the Military World. After all, everyone has their own area of expertise, and in their view, even if Qiu Yan was exceptionally knowledgeable, he couldn't be an expert in everything.

During the Palace Examination, Li Kun stayed at Qiu Yan's table the longest, which inevitably attracted the attention of many candidates, leading to some comparisons. However, as Qiu Yan's reputation grew, no one dared to openly question him anymore.

Qiu Yan ignored these small actions and even disregarded external objects. From the moment he finished writing, his mind and intention shifted from the outside to the inside, his Divine Soul controlling his Divine Sense, his Divine Sense blossoming into spirit, and his spirit entwined with Dragon Qi.

The Dragon Qi rose and fell, and within the False Core suppressing it, the Simulated Three Souls spun rapidly, drawing in the essence of flesh and blood.

However, the extraction of these essences from his physical body did not weaken Qiu Yan again. This is because the False Core is, in essence, the foundation of the body and an extension of the Seven Souls. Strengthening the False Core is equivalent to strengthening the body, which can only make one's essence, energy, and spirit more abundant!

This surge of energy caused Qiu Yan's bones to tremble slightly. With each step he took, a faint aura emanated from the soles of his feet, merging with the ground and permeating the fertile soil.

Around him, Prosperity Capital Will surged, drawing down invisible Dragon Qi that hovered and danced around Qiu Yan. Within his body, the Dragon Qi had expanded to its limit. It no longer absorbed the Sage Spirit, but was instead entangled by the information revealed within that spirit, bound by Qiu Yan's own thoughts and beliefs, and suppressed by the faintly round, rotating False Core.

The Dragon Qi was immobilized, yet it also captivated Qiu Yan's entire mind, leaving him no time to look elsewhere.

Fortunately, the candidates had already exhausted their mental energy after the palace Palace Examination. This examination required complete concentration and careful consideration, and no one dared to take it lightly. With the emperor and prime ministers present, the candidates had to think about giving perfect answers on one hand, and on the other hand, they wanted to leave a good impression on the emperor and prime ministers. This multitasking was extremely taxing on their minds, and although it was only half a day, they were already completely exhausted.

Although some people were observing Qiu Yan, they could not concentrate and ultimately could not see anything strange about Qiu Yan. Soon, he followed a group of eunuchs out of the palace, intending to rest for a day in preparation for the announcement of the Grand Ceremony of Proclaiming Results.

Who wouldn't want the title of top scholar in the imperial examination? It brings glory to one's ancestors!

However, there are always exceptions. Just as everyone was calming down, someone inadvertently noticed something unusual about Qiu Yan. This person had sharp eyes and was none other than Yang Yan, who had been noticed by the emperor.

Yang Yan was a tall man, and the straight-cut blue robe he wore stretched taut over his body. At first glance, he looked more like a military general than a scholar, but upon closer inspection, one could discern a touch of refined and scholarly air about him.

Yang Yan has a pair of narrow eyes, which are now gleaming with a sharp light as he stares at Qiu Yan.

"This person is Qiu Yan, but he doesn't have the imposing presence I expected. However, there seems to be a change in him; his energy is trembling. Could he have started practicing martial arts?"

Boom!

Yang Yan was lost in thought when his train of thought was interrupted by a clap of thunder.

"Hmm?" Yang Yan looked up at the sound and saw a bolt of lightning streak across the clear sky. Beside him, the scholar also made the same gesture.

The sky was clear and blue, yet lightning flashed across the sky, a sight that astonished everyone present, leaving them wondering what caused it.

In the Void, the Dragon Qi changed slightly, and the scene of Military School began to spread. With the help of the Dragon Qi, it began to move towards the Order in the Void!

Qiu Yan's brows twitched slightly, a sharp glint flashed in his eyes, and then his thoughts drifted away with the wind, encountering a surging, vast, and profound mass of information!

An unexpected change occurred quietly.

Meanwhile, the marking of papers is underway.

After collecting and arranging the exam papers, the official in charge of sealing them would cover the names of the examinees, and then a clerk would come to copy them. Only after the papers were compared and organized would they be sent to the examiners for grading.

The Palace Examination had only a little over three hundred people, which was less of a workload compared to the Metropolitan Examination. With ample manpower, the grading process went very smoothly. Many examiners gathered in one hall, grading papers in turn and exchanging ideas to determine the rankings of the candidates.

In fact, by the time the Palace Examination was held, the examiners, who accompanied the emperor on his Hall of Gathered Excellence, already knew which paper belonged to which person and were unlikely to make a mistake. The process of anonymizing the names was merely a formality; once the rankings were determined, everyone knew exactly who each person belonged to.

However, the final rankings were not determined by them. After the rankings were completed and the names were removed, the exam papers would be sent to the emperor for review, and the emperor would determine the rankings.

The top three were the first class, namely Zhuangyuan, Bangyan, and Tanhua. The remaining classes were the second and third classes, which were awarded the titles of Jinshi and Tongjinshi respectively.

This is the normal procedure, but since Li Kun ascended the throne, he has always been hands-on in everything. For example, in the Palace Examination, the emperor usually just goes through the motions, but Li Kun really wants to supervise the examination, carefully examine and inspect it.

This was an extremely exhausting task. If it were any other emperor, he would have gone back to rest and wait until the next day to determine the rankings. But Li Kun seemed to care nothing at all. Not long after he returned, he came back to the hall where the papers were being reviewed.

While the examiners were grading the papers, Li Kun would pick up the papers, read them, and write his imperial comments in vermilion ink.

As he looked at the papers, Li Kun nodded, then smiled at one of them, "This one is good. It uses a surprise attack strategy and clearly states the risks involved. It's substantial and subtly aligns with Qiu's..." Li Kun trailed off, shaking his head, "It still can't compare to that one."

The examiners who graded the papers all understood what "that one" represented, and didn't say much. However, this exam paper, which the emperor had praised, was also selected and given a good ranking.

After annotating for a while, Li Kun was exhausted and looked tired. The eunuch repeatedly comforted him and finally persuaded Li Kun to return home.

He had only taken a few steps when he was immediately filled with regret. The reason he had rushed over was to look for a candidate's examination paper, hoping to gain insight into Qiu Yan's knowledge. In that case, he could justify not naming Qiu Yan the top scholar, thus avoiding criticism. However, he still failed to achieve his goal.

"Indeed, he is a genius beyond compare, unmatched by others. In fact, we should be thankful. If Qiu Yan's extraordinary phenomenon had occurred during the Palace Examination, I would have been in a difficult position. Now, we can still salvage the situation to some extent."

As Li Kun was about to leave the hall, the eunuch behind him suddenly exclaimed in alarm and rushed forward to protect Li Kun, as if facing a formidable enemy.

"Your Majesty, look at this..."

A thin layer of bright yellow mist had appeared in the surrounding air without anyone noticing!

"This is..." Li Kun's eyes widened suddenly as he looked around, but everything was shrouded in mist. "How is this possible?"

The Supreme Realm Emperor of Great Rui's expression changed drastically. Ignoring everything else, he turned around and went back to the hall for reviewing examination papers.

Inside the hall, the examiners who were grading the papers all stopped what they were doing, looking at the mist swirling around the hall with varying expressions. Several of them couldn't help but look at Wang Fu.

This wasn't the first time they'd seen something like this; they knew what the fog meant, which explained their astonishment.

Wang Fu also stopped what he was doing, frowned and looked around, then suddenly thought of something, got up and rushed to the side hall door.

The fog is much thicker here!

"Wang Qing, could this fog be coming from the exam papers?" Li Kun's voice came from behind. Wang Fu quickly turned around and stepped back, about to bow, but Li Kun stopped him.

"Let's go in and take a look first. If it really Thought-Convergent Order and the Dragon Qi Manifestation, then... it's a joyous occasion." That's what he said, but Li Kun's face was full of contradictions, as if he had already guessed something and was unable to make a decision.

As they spoke, the two entered the side hall.

From deep within the side hall, several panicked voices could be heard; it was the official in charge of sealing the seal and the clerk shouting.

This side hall is used to temporarily store the original exam papers. Once the main hall has finished grading and ranking them, they will be taken out. According to past practice, this hall will remain quiet for at least a few hours.

But just now, something unexpected happened.

One moment everything was calm, but a moment later, bright yellow smoke billowed out of the pile of exam papers, spreading rapidly and filling the entire side hall in the blink of an eye. It then overflowed into the main hall and was eventually discovered by Li Kun.

Upon arriving at the side hall, Li Kun heard the exclamations of several officials in charge of sealing the gates. Remaining calm and composed, he spoke to reassure them. He then went with Wang Fu to the table and found the source of the fog.

"It really is here!" Li Kun muttered to himself, reaching out and pulling out a test paper from among the layers of exam papers.

The exam paper was trembling slightly. After he unfolded it, he could see that every word on the paper was jumping, as if it had come alive. The pitch-black ink seemed to connect to another world, and the bright yellow mist was coming from inside!

"It really is Qiu Yan's piece!"

Looking at the exam paper, Li Kun didn't even need to unseal the names to know who the author was. He had stood by Qiu Yan's desk earlier and witnessed him write the piece; the characters were full of vigor and vitality. How could Li Kun not recognize the handwriting?

Turning to Wang Fu, Li Kun whispered, "Wang Qing is also a person who Literary-Affiliated Order, but can you discern which Human Path Order Qiu Yan's piece resonates with? Is it Great Cheng harmony?"

ps:

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