While they were talking, Fu Leisheng had already finished writing an essay in the eight-part style. Though it was just over two hundred words, it was well-structured and covered all the necessary parts: opening, continuation, initial argument, main argument, secondary argument, concluding argument, and closing. It was concise, skillful, and elegantly composed, making it easy to read aloud.
Tian Huayi praised it, dried the ink, and said, "The county magistrate just died, so there's no one in charge of New Township County right now. This makes it easier to cheat in the county exam. By the time a new magistrate is appointed, this matter will have passed, and no one will investigate."
Fu Leisheng replied, "It's just a scholar's exam; who would bother to check?"
Tian Huayi said, "There's also Shen Yusheng, whose literary luck is flourishing and who has been blessed by the True God with a Divine Fetus. This might attract a lot of envy. You must protect him well. He has a bright future and doesn't need to take the county exam anymore; at the very least, he'll become a scholar."
Fu Leisheng nodded, feeling troubled, "The provincial exam is in the fall. He needs to pass that to become a scholar and not worry about losing his Divine Fetus. We must protect him until then. Luckily, the Zhao family has fallen."
Tian Huayi smiled, "Yes, it's fortunate the Zhao family has fallen. If they hadn't, Shen Yusheng's Divine Fetus wouldn't be safe!"
Although there were still some powerful families in New Township County, none were as influential as the Zhao family.
The new provincial governor hadn't taken office yet and was still busy executing members of the Zhao family. The influential families in the provincial capital were anxious and preoccupied with their own safety, so they likely wouldn't have time to come to the countryside to dig up a Divine Fetus.
Fu Leisheng recalled the past, "Years ago, our county had someone with an unmatched Divine Fetus, surpassing the highest grade, called the Innate Dao Fetus. I heard it was taken away."
Tian Huayi said, "I know about that. He was in the same batch as me for the county exam. During the big exam, the True God descended. I was trying to release a spell when I heard people exclaiming that a kid from the countryside was blessed by the True God and given a Divine Fetus. It was a big deal. Later, I heard that the kid couldn't keep his Divine Fetus and died."
Fu Leisheng sighed, "I heard about that too. They say that kid ranked first in fifty provinces for the literary exam, and everyone praised his essays. He also broke records in the martial exam, with his spell reaching a range of thirty-six zhang, far beyond the previous record of twenty-seven zhang for the Midnight Demon-Slaying Sword. He pushed the record forward by nine zhang! No one has broken it since."
Tian Huayi asked, "Do you remember the kid's name?"
Fu Leisheng shook his head, "It's been too long. Who remembers?"
Tian Huayi said, "The examiners next to me were discussing that the kid's Innate Dao Fetus could be sold for a high price, and someone in the Western Capital would definitely pay a lot. Coincidentally, the person who got the Innate Dao Fetus was also named Chen Shi."
He waved Chen Shi's exam paper and laughed, "It's the same name as our rebellious junior brother."
This coincidence amazed Fu Leisheng, "What kind of extraordinary talent did that Chen Shi have to receive an Innate Dao Fetus? If this Chen Shi has half his talent, our Scholars Academy would be very lucky."
He shook his head and turned to leave, then stopped suddenly.
"Huayi, you must protect Shen Yusheng, just like I protected you back then!"
Fu Leisheng's voice was stern, "It's hard for poor families to produce noble children, and even if they do, they can't protect them. That's the way of the world. But no matter what, we must protect him, or there will truly be no hope!"
Tian Huayi solemnly bowed, "Rest assured, I will do my best to ensure Shen Yusheng's safety!"
The divine descent caused quite a stir. Tian Huayi ordered that no one was to reveal Shen Yusheng's name or the grade of his Divine Fetus.
However, by the afternoon, almost all of New Township County knew about a boy named Shen Yusheng who was blessed by the True God during the literary exam and given a top-grade Divine Fetus, known as the Wenchang Mysterious Fetus, as famous as the Purple Jade Divine Fetus.
This made Tian Huayi furious. He gathered the examiners, scolded them, and demanded to know who leaked the information, but no one admitted it.
Though he knew it was an insider, he had no evidence and had to suppress the matter for now.
The next day was the martial exam, held at the martial training ground outside the city.
The martial exam was simple: without a Divine Fetus, students had to gather True Qi and transform it into sword energy to pierce a straw mat ten zhang away to pass.
However, they needed to perform six types of sword energy.
Chen Shi, Hu Feifei, and other students from the Scholars Academy arrived at the exam site, each preparing themselves. The martial exam was crowded with onlookers, including many students' families and private school teachers.
The martial exam was hard to cheat, so it was more relaxed, allowing outsiders to watch.
In the martial training ground, only about thirty percent of the students could fully release six types of sword energy, and even fewer could reach ten zhang away.
Most couldn't complete the six types, and hitting the target ten zhang away with accuracy was even rarer. Many hit the wrong straw mats.
Seeing this, Chen Shi relaxed.
He had thought his haphazard learning of the Midnight Demon-Slaying Sword wouldn't pass, but now it seemed he was better than most students.
"My martial exam score won't be outstanding, but as long as I do well in the literary exam, I can easily become a scholar!"
Soon it was Hu Feifei's turn. Her skills were impressive, completing the six forms of stab, slash, wipe, pick, cloud, and chop perfectly. Her sword technique, gestures, and posture were flawless and graceful.
Her sword energy pierced the air with a loud sound, and the straw mat ten zhang away was instantly pierced!
Behind the first row of straw mats were others, hanging at one zhang intervals. Most students' sword energy couldn't pierce more than a few mats, leaving few marks.
Hu Feifei's sword energy pierced through seventeen mats before its power was exhausted.
Tian Huayi and the examiners were amazed and all looked at her.
Such powerful sword energy was rare even for those at the Divine Fetus Stage, nearly reaching the limit of the Midnight Demon-Slaying Sword!
"The Scholars Academy is full of talent."
An examiner stroked his beard and smiled, "Congratulations, Lord Tian."
Tian Huayi laughed, "It's all thanks to the teacher's guidance, nothing to do with me."
He looked into the field and saw Chen Shi eager to try.
Tian Huayi watched from afar and soon noticed Chen Shi's shaky foundation, which were key grading points, clearly showing Chen Shi hadn't trained specifically.
"The starting stance of the Midnight Demon-Slaying Sword is wrong, the posture is off, the sword technique is vague, and the movements aren't smooth."
He shook his head, thinking, "This martial exam's standout is Hu Feifei. Shen Yusheng isn't participating; he already has a Divine Fetus and is preparing for the provincial exam in the fall. The Scholars Academy having two highly talented students is already impressive..."
Fu Leisheng also noticed Chen Shi's various flaws and wondered, "Could it be that someone else killed the county magistrate and his wife that night?"
Suddenly, a thunderous roar echoed in the field, startling many students who were gathering their energy. Some lost their concentration, causing their sword energy to scatter, while others were so scared they nearly injured fellow students.
Tian Huayi quickly looked over and saw a sword energy tearing through the air, exploding the straw mats in its path. The energy roared like thunder, piercing through twenty-seven mats in an instant!
Tian Huayi's heart raced, and his pupils contracted.
Ten years ago, the fifty-province first place Chen Shi's sword energy reached thirty-six zhang, setting an unbreakable record. So the martial exam only prepared twenty-seven mats, with the twenty-seventh placed thirty-six zhang away. This record had remained unbroken.
Until today!
He jumped to his feet, anxiously shouting to the exam officials, "Run! Quickly run! See how far that sword energy goes!"
The exam officials were dumbfounded but hurriedly ran towards the twenty-seventh mat.
Outside the martial training ground, Fu Leisheng was also anxious, shouting to the officials, "Use the Armored Horse Talisman! Use the Armored Horse Talisman!"
The officials hastily activated the Armored Horse Talisman but still couldn't catch up to the sword energy.
Tian Huayi suddenly exerted force with his feet, sprinting forward to chase the sword energy.
This was a record-breaking strike, and it had to be measured precisely to see how far the sword energy could go!
But just as he started, a strong wind blew, and a large tree seventy zhang away suddenly lost half its crown, with countless branches and leaves falling.
Tian Huayi stopped, furious, veins bulging on his forehead, and shouted, "Wind-Stabilizing Talisman! Where's the Wind-Stabilizing Talisman? Who embezzled it?"
The Wind-Stabilizing Talisman was essential for the martial exam, drawn on wooden plaques. Before the exam, a talisman master would use black dog blood and cinnabar to activate its power.
The plaques were placed around the exam site to stabilize the wind. Otherwise, a sudden gust could deflect the students' sword energy, making it dangerous and hard to score.
Chen Shi's sword energy was blown off course by the sudden wind, making it impossible to determine how far it went.
"Sir, it's not their fault."
An examiner caught up with Tian Huayi and whispered, "There weren't enough Wind-Stabilizing Talismans to cover more than thirty-six zhang."
Tian Huayi realized his mistake, nodded lightly, and calmed down, "I was too anxious."
Just as he said this, another thunderous explosion sounded as Chen Shi released a second sword energy. It roared through the air, rolling forward at incredible speed!
Tian Huayi couldn't speak further and immediately sprinted forward, shocked, "It's Chen Shi's sword energy!"
He hadn't seen who released the first sword energy, but now he saw it was Chen Shi.
This second sword energy wasn't as fast as the first. The first was a thrust, the fastest strike in the Midnight Demon-Slaying Sword, while this one was a slash.
The slash was different from a chop. A chop splits an object from the center, while a slash cuts along a cross-section, like decapitating or cutting at the waist.
The slash had refining power, slower than a thrust but much stronger.
Even with Tian Huayi's full effort, he couldn't catch up to this sword energy, shocked, "This sword energy's power is absurd! I can't catch up... I need the Armored Horse Talisman!"
He paused, activating the Armored Horse Talisman.
At the same time, he felt a sense of absurdity, "This isn't a life-and-death battlefield; it's just a student's martial exam, yet I'm using the Armored Horse Talisman!"
Outside the field, Fu Leisheng was also sprinting, chasing the sword energy.
Both were determined to see the limit of Chen Shi's strike, running with all their might. Tian Huayi used the Armored Horse Talisman to speed up, while the slash's power waned, slowing down.
Fu Leisheng and Tian Huayi were pleased to finally catch up to the sword energy, only to see it fly another ten zhang before dissipating.
They arrived at the spot where the sword energy vanished, smiling, but their smiles froze.
They had run out of the martial training ground, standing ten zhang outside, about eighty zhang from where Chen Shi had released the sword energy.
"Whoosh—"
Another sword energy whistled past them, precisely between the two. It was a wipe strike, precise like a snake's tongue, with a narrow attack range.
But because of its precision, the sword energy was more concentrated, faster, and flew farther.
Behind them, they heard a thud as the sword energy, blown slightly off course, pierced a large tree's trunk.
"Eighty-four zhang," Tian Huayi exhaled deeply.
Another sword energy flew in, this time a pick strike.
The sword energy rose from the ground, causing the earth to explode as it passed.
Several examiners and officials chasing after it nearly got sliced in half and quickly dodged.
"Sixty-two zhang," Fu Leisheng said blankly.
Then the cloud strike came, the sword energy spinning like a wheel.
"Seventy-one zhang," Tian Huayi's eye twitched.
Finally, Chen Shi formed a sword seal, chopping down, sending wave after wave of sword energy forward, like a relay, growing stronger with each strike!
The ground cracked under the sword energy, and finally, with the most powerful strike, the martial training ground's barriers shattered, scattering everywhere.
"Seventy zhang," Fu Leisheng frowned deeply.
The six forms of the Midnight Demon-Slaying Sword were complete. Chen Shi awkwardly copied other students, bowing to the examiners' seats, then stepped back. But the examiners had all run outside.
"Master, what do we do?"
Tian Huayi's mouth twitched, half-smiling, half-crying, "He surpassed the ten-year record by so much. Should we report it truthfully or adjust his score?"
If they didn't adjust it, even the Western Capital might be stunned by this score and come to investigate. They'd find out Chen Shi cheated in the literary exam, and the essays weren't his!
Then both master and student would face severe consequences!
Fu Leisheng muttered, "Adjusting it might still be shocking. How much should you adjust?"
Tian Huayi's head spun.
The record was broken by so much that even cheating was difficult!
End of Chapter.