Perhaps your prefecture had seen a surge of geniuses this year without any increase in its quota. Perhaps you had met with some inconceivable accident. Perhaps you had suffered an injustice you had no way to appeal... But whatever the reason, as long as you were a Tang person, as long as you came to the Divine Capital, you could step into the ring.
Here, no other factors mattered. Only your fists decided your fate. As long as you truly were among the strongest two hundred, a place rightfully belonged to you.
The methods each prefecture used to select talent also differed. Bowang Prefecture employed one of the most common.
First, some places in the Martial Competition were allocated to the subordinate counties, whose County Offices selected local talent. If those they nominated secured a ranking, the county magistrate gained an administrative achievement, and that county would also receive preferential allocations of Martial Dao resources.
Second, some places were allocated to sects within the prefecture, which determined a fixed number of entrants through either internal competitions or joint competitions between several sects.
Third, three to five places were allotted to major merchants within the prefecture, allowing each to select a martial artist to take part in the selection. The merchants' names could be written on their clothing. In exchange, the merchants covered part of the cost of holding the Martial Examination and helped the Prefectural Office publicize the Martial Competition.
Finally, following the Divine Capital's example, a "Contest Before the Contest" was also held in the Prefectural City. Regardless of why someone had failed to qualify through the three routes above, and regardless of where they came from, anyone who met the Martial Examination's basic requirements could compete for the last places through their own abilities.
Besides giving an opportunity