The Metropolitan Graduate presiding over the competition said, "Crafting techniques may be shared, but mechanisms must not be made by someone else. Now, everyone must swear an oath to Zhuge Half-Sage, guaranteeing that the mechanism you entered was made entirely by you alone, without anyone's help during its construction!"
The host spoke sternly, but Fang Yun could hear the loophole in his words.
As long as a competing Licentiate craftsman received enough guidance before beginning construction, even if someone taught him how to make a new mechanism hand over hand, he would still qualify, provided he received no outside help during the actual construction.
Such rules had little effect on ordinary people, but offered enormous advantages to wealthy, prominent families. Even if they had no craftsman of high literary rank in their own household to provide guidance, they could spend a fortune to hire one.
However, if their own abilities were insufficient, even knowing every detail of a mechanism would not let them build anything particularly powerful.
Like everyone else, Fang Yun quietly swore to Zhuge Liang that he had made his competition mechanism entirely himself.
Once everyone had sworn their oaths, the host continued explaining the rules.
"With a thousand people competing together, things will be somewhat chaotic, so everyone must place a Mechanism Bell beside them. As you operate your mechanisms, the three Great Scholar craftsmen will release power according to the quality of your mechanisms. The Mechanism Bells will absorb that power and ring."
"In short, the louder your Mechanism Bell rings and the longer it continues, the more successful your mechanism is. If you qualify for advancement in literary rank, your Mechanism Bell will also resonate with the great bell of Shu City's Craftsmen Institute. If your mechanism is of an exceptionally high standard, surpassing the