CLANG! BOOM! CLANG!
After many years, Baiyang County had finally produced another Military Scholar.
After Chu Lingguang, wearing a large red flower and riding Little Red Horse, entered Qiling Prefecture, he was escorted by personnel from various Government Offices along the way.
Upon entering South City, the City Lord personally led a retinue to see him to Fishing Town, and he ordered Garrison Commander Hei Hu to escort Chu Lingguang back to Baiyang County.
Lord Xu had been waiting outside the county seat for a long time. The moment Hei Hu's escort came into view, he led his men forward to greet them.
He led the men from the County Yamen, along with local gentry and elders, and escorted Chu Lingguang all the way back to Liu Family Gully.
Firecrackers exploded and gongs and drums thundered all along the route. The elders and fellow villagers scrambled to congratulate Chu Lingguang. They spoke of the hardships he had endured while practicing martial arts, and many were moved to tears, feeling as if they had experienced it themselves. They all exclaimed that Heaven rewards the diligent and that Chu Lingguang's success was well-deserved.
「That day.」
The streets and alleys of Baiyang County were decorated with lanterns and colorful banners.
Wine Street was bustling with excitement. The restaurants Chu Lingguang had visited were packed with customers.
The Guo Wei Martial Arts Hall was so swamped by gentry and wealthy families that its threshold was nearly worn away. Liu Family Gully was brightly lit, and even Mr. Tie's sheep pen had celebratory red paper cuttings pasted on it.
Everyone was celebrating Chu Lingguang's success in the examination; every household was as festive as if it were New Year's.
Chu Lingguang knew that life wasn't easy for everyone. Before returning to Baiyang County, he had sent letters instructing Butcher Hu and Li Yishan to purchase plenty of food, clothing, and other necessities to be distributed among the neighbors. He also had Lord Xu arrange for the roads in Liu Family Gully, Zhang Family Gully, and several other nearby villages to be repaired.
Having passed the Martial Arts Examination and become an Advanced Scholar, the villagers were all deeply grateful for Chu Lingguang's generosity. Whenever they spoke of him, they couldn't help but give a thumbs-up in praise. Even those who were dissatisfied or jealous in their hearts didn't dare to openly slander him and always greeted him with a smile.
Chu Lingguang didn't know how many of them were truly grateful, but after passing the Martial Arts Examination and returning to Liu Family Gully, he had gained a lot of Favor Points. Although most were just small amounts, every little bit added up, and the total was quite substantial.
The only thing Chu Lingguang regretted was that when he received gratitude from multiple people for a single act, the Cultivation and Martial Arts he obtained were all very basic training methods, completely unsuitable for his current level of cultivation.
He was now just one step away from the True Martial Realm. Forty-six streams of responsive power were on the verge of erupting. If he could just awaken them, he would definitely be able to step into the True Martial Realm and even excel within it.
Unfortunately, it was as if he had hit a bottleneck. He was still unable to awaken those forty-six streams of responsive power, and his cultivation had stagnated.
After returning to Liu Family Gully, he was flooded with a constant stream of visitors.
For the first three days, Chu Lingguang was busy receiving friends and relatives. He didn't actually have many friends, but after becoming a Military Scholar, everyone acted like his sworn brother, and all he heard were words of praise.
Starting on the fourth day, all sorts of banquets and feasts awaited him.
Chu Lingguang went along with it for another three days.
By the seventh day, he couldn't take it anymore. The people he met at the banquets were overly enthusiastic, and many asked him for favors. He had originally thought he could earn another wave of Favor Points, but the returns were few and far between.
Chu Lingguang finally realized that as a Military Scholar, he lacked an imposing air and didn't act like the other officials. Although his neighbors sang his praises, they were also becoming increasingly forward with him.
'If this continues,' he thought, 'forget earning Favor Points, I'll probably just attract a load of trouble.'
So, he started refusing invitations and declining to meet with anyone he didn't know. He announced publicly that he was entering secluded cultivation to await his assignment from the Court.
「Six days later.」
The Court's orders arrived.
Chu Lingguang was to report for duty in Qingzhou City, within Qingzhou Prefecture in the Southern Domain. His position was Captain of Qingzhou, a Senior Officer, with a rank equal to Yang Shaorong's.
"Master, back when Senior Brother passed the examination to become a Military Scholar, he only served as a Captain in South City, starting as a mid-level officer. It was only after a few years that he was transferred to Qiling Prefecture to become a Captain there. My position is the same as his right from the start. Could it be that Mr. Du helped me behind the scenes?" Chu Lingguang asked.
"The Court has become especially standardized in its appointment of talent from the examinations in recent years," Guo Wei analyzed. "Although Mr. Du is one of the Royal Family and Relatives, he doesn't have the power to decide your placement. Besides, if he could have intervened, the Court would have likely sent you to the Northern Territory, or even assigned you a post in Yunchuan City. But you were sent to the Southern Domain to serve in Qingzhou City. Therefore, this has nothing to do with Mr. Du."
"But on the way back, you said that becoming a Senior Officer was a privilege reserved for the top three in the Palace Examination. How did it fall to me?" Chu Lingguang said, puzzled.
During the Palace Examination assessment, the spear thrust he had delivered on the stone altar had injured Yan Zhen, Qin Yu, and Hu Yanlin to varying degrees.
Because Yan Zhen had already experienced Chu Lingguang's power in the final round of the Provincial Examination, his injuries were the lightest. In the end, relying on his more than ninety streams of responsive power and his Blade Momentum Form Realm, he narrowly defeated Hu Yanlin by a single move to successfully claim the title of Martial Champion Scholar.
Hu Yanlin became the Martial Runner-up Scholar, and Qin Yu took the title of Martial Third Place Scholar.
As for the sword on the stone altar, no one had managed to draw it, nor had anyone even touched it. Only afterward did people realize that the so-called "loyalty" test meant grabbing the teetering banner amidst the sea of fire. Only by touching the banner could one successfully grasp the sword on the altar.
"During the Palace Examination, although you didn't win the title of Runner-up or Third Place Scholar, your courage was commendable. You dared to raise your spear against three True Martial Realm experts. Perhaps it was this that moved the Court to promote you unconventionally, to encourage you not to fear any opponent, and even to make an example of you for all to see."
Guo Wei then added, "There's also your performance in the final round. According to what Eunuch Liu knows, those two experts from Yuanchu Mountain were thoroughly impressed. It's possible this has something to do with them."