Heart Steady, Roots Unmoved; People Gather to Offer Congratulations

The scene changed--

His mother was buried, his father remained silent, and the boy stood before the grave, feeling lost. Then, he slowly made up his mind. Just then, it was as if a voice was encouraging him in his ear, slowly seeping into his heart.

But then, the boy's expression changed, a resolute look appeared in his eyes, and his voice became unbearable!

After failing the County Examination, he did not do well in the Children's Examination, and the young man became increasingly depressed. Misfortune followed one after another. It seemed that there was an irresistible force controlling everything, just waiting for the young man to realize it and submit to it.

But at the crucial moment, the boy's resolve only grew stronger!

He struggled with his studies, couldn't solve his problems, and failed his exams repeatedly. He moved to a village in search of peace, but evil spirits appeared at his door, and the entire village was slaughtered. It seemed as if the wrath of the gods was behind this.

But faced with all this, the young man did not become discouraged; instead, he became even more determined!

Time and again, memories, at the final moment of change, are always disrupted and countered by a strong will!

"Why is this happening? Even if this person is a cultivator, he still possesses Literary Thought. His memories have been disturbed by the starlight, so why is he out of control and able to continuously resist me?"

Through the starlight, it tried to alter the memories, forcibly adding its own existence into Qiu Yan's past. However, after repeated failures, the will within the starlight finally became somewhat impatient.

In his haste, he could no longer maintain his profound state of mind. In an instant, the tight-knit isolation created a gap, and amidst a series of shattering sounds, the Military School Order pressed down, as if soldiers were drawing their swords and slashing, completely shattering the barrier!

Boom!

Amidst the deafening roar of his five senses, the will within the starlight was utterly astonished. Then it vanished!

Qiu Yan rode his horse, the starlight surrounding him suddenly dissipated, the sounds around him returned to normal, and the movements of those people resumed as usual, no longer slow and almost frozen.

The flow of Literary Thought Fortune, and lingered above their heads.

However, the emotions ignited by the starlight continued to circulate among the crowd, and cheers lingered for the rest of the journey, even triggering a chain reaction that spread from the inner Imperial Palace to the outer city.

Inside the palace, an elderly official stood before Li Kun. The man had white hair and beard, with his beard hanging down to his chest. Although he wore an official robe, he was very thin, causing the robe to flutter. He gave off an air of otherworldly elegance.

This man was named Cao Xundao, and he was the Director of the Imperial Observatory of the Great Rui Dynasty.

The Imperial Astronomical Bureau was responsible for observing celestial phenomena. However, this was not merely for the purpose of mystifying or predicting good or bad fortune.

It should be understood that the dynasty was based on agriculture, and agriculture required following the seasons. Therefore, one of the major responsibilities of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau was to "observe celestial phenomena and determine the seasons" by observing celestial phenomena and establishing calendars. This was an experience based on Human Path wisdom, which could be used to improve production and signified organization.

However, Li Kun summoned the Bureau Chief this time not to inquire about agricultural calendars, but to ask about the appearance of a star during the day and its envelopment of Qiu Yan.

Inside and outside the Imperial City, spies were everywhere, serving as the emperor's eyes and ears. Moreover, given the importance of the Imperial Examinations, the court had deployed a large number of troops to guard the area; how could they possibly miss anything?

Cao Xundao old and frail, but his eyes showed no signs of age. Upon hearing this, he calmly replied, "Your Majesty, I had a feeling when the starlight first appeared. Looking around, I saw the light coming from the Big Dipper, where the handle and the ladle meet. It must be the Tianquan." His voice was full of vigor.

"Tianquan? Isn't that the same as Literary Star?" A hint of surprise flashed in Li Kun's eyes, but he quickly calmed down and breathed a sigh of relief. "In that case, my selection of the top scholar was absolutely correct." His words revealed a hint of relief.

Cao Xundao lowered his head and remained silent. As his eyelids fluttered, a deep meaning flashed in his eyes, but he did not say anything more.

"The results are being released today, no wonder it's so lively. I wonder who will top the Imperial Examinations this time? And which school of thought will prevail?"

Outside Xingjing Imperial City, Zhen Zhizuo listened to the faint shouts coming from inside the city, sighed, and then glanced at the convoy behind him.

Chen Jing stepped down from a carriage, glanced at the city gate, and gave a meaningful smile before saying, "Senior brother, there's no need to think too much. Let's go to my Chen Household to rest first. My father will definitely welcome you with open arms when he knows you're coming."

Zhen Zhizuo shook his head and said, "That's not appropriate. I came here to seek your guidance from that Buddhist Sect monk. We should go to his temple instead. There's no need to bother your esteemed residence."

Chen Jing laughed and said, "That won't do, Father will blame me. Speaking of which, the results are being released today, why don't we go inside and take a look? Otherwise, we might regret it, and perhaps some unexpected things will happen. Senior Brother, don't forget, Brother Qiu also participated in this Metropolitan Examination. We were caught up in a demonic affair a few days ago and isolated from the world, we should go and inquire about him..."

"Oh? Qiu Yan..." Zhen Zhizuo pondered for a moment upon hearing this, and was about to speak when a gasp suddenly came from the convoy.

Then An Jin from the Nine Abyss Academy rushed out and went straight to Zhen Zhizuo, saying, "Brother Zhen, my junior brother's symptoms are getting worse. We should go to the temple quickly. Didn't the letter say that those masters can cure diseases and save lives? If we delay any longer, something bad might happen."

Zhen Zhizuo nodded, then turned to Chen Jing and said, "There is really no other choice. Brother Xi has made great contributions to the Scholar Forest. If it weren't for him, our entire trip to Eastern Capital would have been wiped out. The original intention of our trip westward was to treat him, so we can't delay. Let's go directly to the temple."

The "Brother Xi" he mentioned refers to Xi Muyuan of the Nine Abyss Academy, a top student of the Grand Confucian Zhou Dongyi, who had a falling out with Qiu Yan and vomited blood twice.

Chen Jing sighed, a look of regret on his face. "That's all we can do. It's a pity we won't be able to witness such a grand event."

A few breaths later, the carriage turned around and headed north of the city. After traveling a few steps, several people hurried over, prompting Zhen Zhizuo to lift the curtain and look out.

Among the people coming from the opposite direction, some of them paused upon seeing Zhen Zhizuo, then stopped and bowed in greeting.

"Brother Zhang? Where are you going in such a hurry?" Zhen Zhizuo recognized the man as Zhang Cheng, a disciple of Void Master. He was a man of profound learning and renowned Central Passes.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Cheng replied, "I am here on my master's orders to deliver a congratulatory gift to the newly appointed top scholar Qiu Yan!" After speaking, he bowed again, "The parade is about to end, so I will take my leave now. I will speak with Brother Zhen again when I have time."

After saying this, the man quickly left with two men who looked like servants, leaving Zhen Zhizuo looking utterly astonished.

"The new top scorer, Qiu Yan? Qiu Yan got the top score?"

He was initially stunned, then snapped out of it and realized the astonishing nature of Zhang Cheng's words.

"Void Master sent him to deliver congratulatory gifts? What's going on? That master is the Grand Confucian Grand Void, who stands by his principles. Even if Qiu Yan becomes the top scholar, he cannot compare to him. Why would he send someone to deliver congratulatory gifts? It should be Qiu Yan who goes to visit him!"

As he pondered this, cold sweat trickled down Zhen Zhizuo's forehead. He recalled the scene when First Meeting Qiu Yan in Jiannan Circuit.

"At that time, Qi Jiulian and Qiu Yan were both present and should have had a relationship. Was it not Void Master who offered congratulations, but Qi Jiulian? However, how could Qi Jiulian possibly order Zhang Cheng?"

Filled with doubts, the convoy continued on its way. Zhen Zhizuo knew that Xi Muyuan had not made the matter public because Qiu Yan had fainted twice from vomiting blood. Little did he know that this slight lapse in judgment would backfire.

On the other side, after the parade ended and the procession dispersed, Qiu Yan also dismounted and returned after going through the formalities.

"That starlight seemed mysterious, accompanied by divine power, but at the moment of connection, one could sense a sense of gathering and annihilation, devouring the surrounding Literary Thoughts while losing its own literary brilliance, like a Black Hole. It was completely different from the deity described in the book. I don't know if it was an error in the record, or if it had simply changed its nature, or even been replaced by someone else..."

As they walked, Qiu Yan recalled the scene from before, while Zhou Guan, who was walking beside him, was very interested and kept asking about the feeling of being bathed in starlight, with a look of longing on his face.

Upon seeing his appearance, Qiu Yan's heart stirred.

"The human yearning for the extraordinary is something that can never be extinguished."

Just now, at the last moment of the parade, Qiu Yan dismounted, and finally some people broke through the barriers and came closer to touch him. It was as if a bit of the people's pent-up support had risen up, just like the incense offerings to a deity! Some people even touched the horse, and the same incense offerings arose.

However, Qiu Yan had severed his connection with the starlight, and with it, all divine thoughts and images had been extinguished. The incense offerings could no longer reach the heavens, so they all stagnated on his body, absorbed by the Humanistic Fire Seed in his Divine Soul, and then fed back out.

Through this connection, Qiu Yan was able to sense the scolding and admonitions people gave to their children after returning home. The desire for their children to succeed was particularly clear, just like in his previous life.

Savoring the emotions, the Humanistic Fire Seed surges ever stronger, accumulating power. If this flame were to return to the Divine Spirit Body now, it would surely bring extraordinary insights.

However, though the feelings are in his heart, his body is still in the mortal world. On the way back, wherever Qiu Yan goes, he will be surrounded by people, and flattery will never cease. Those Human Thoughts gather and fill his heart, enough to make ordinary people unable to distinguish east from west!

"No wonder people say that they get carried away with success; it's because their minds have become inflated and they can't control themselves anymore." Qiu Yan didn't deliberately reject this point, and also incorporated many emotions into the Humanistic Fire Seed.

The Fire Seed kept changing, the flames became more and more intense, and a point of light slowly formed at its core!

Upon returning to the inn, the innkeeper could be seen waiting at the door from afar. As soon as he saw Qiu Yan, he went up to her, offered his congratulations, and was about to take Qiu Yan to the newly prepared room, completely ignoring the Original Edition room that was full of shards.

However, before Qiu Yan could even step upstairs, a voice rang out from outside the inn—

"Is Young Master Qiu here? I am Zhang Cheng, here on the orders of my master, Void Master, to deliver congratulatory gifts to celebrate your success in the imperial examination!"

"Void Master?" Qiu Yan asked, puzzled.

"Void Master!" The people inside and outside the inn were shocked.

Immediately afterward, before they could even react, another voice came from outside the door—

"Is the top scholar here? I am Chen Bi, the steward of the Chen Residence, sent to offer my congratulations!"

ps:

Thank you "Tiantian Jiejie 2006" for the monthly vote!