“This is Chengying Sword. It is indeed a peerless sword. It is so sharp. Without the protection of innate qi, it can be injured by its own sharp sword qi. It is hard to imagine that there is such a clear and flawless natural glass in this world, and it is also so hard and sharp. It is worthy of being an ancient supreme divine weapon and one of the legendary ten divine swords.”

Even powerful figures like Zhu Wushi, the Iron-Blooded Marquis, and Wan Sanqian, who were at the pinnacle of the martial arts world, were equally enamored with the Cheng Ying Sword, a supreme divine weapon, having never seen such an exquisite and powerful peerless weapon.

Zhu Wushi himself also knows swordsmanship (the Absorption Technique allows him to directly learn other people’s martial arts moves), but he is not a sword master. A true sword master needs to comprehend the Dao and understand the true way of the sword. He, who takes shortcuts and seeks to gain without effort, naturally does not. Otherwise, he would not have sent his adopted son, Duan Tianya, to learn swordsmanship outside.

But even a master of innate martial arts like him, who doesn’t understand swordsmanship, can condense sword light with his powerful innate true energy and unleash a sword light that only the most elite swordsmen can wield—the legendary three-foot golden sword light.

To be honest, he was genuinely smitten.

“It is said that Zhang Lingyu’s divine weapon was fed with the corpses and sword intent of sword masters, so it contains the sword masters’ insights into the sword path, as well as their sword intent and sword techniques?”

Shangguan Haitang nodded and said, “That’s right. When Haitang’s sword heart was clear, she could indeed feel a very powerful sword intent and comprehend some sword techniques from it. The sword techniques and internal energy cultivation methods that Haitang has learned now came from this. Although it is uncertain what level the previous master was, he was at least a peerless sword god like a Grandmaster of the Innate Realm.”

Zhu Wushi nodded in agreement. After all, it was a supreme divine weapon, and its master was too weak to be worthy of possessing it. He even suspected that the previous master was not a Grandmaster of the Innate Realm but a Great Grandmaster of the Innate Realm.

Killing Tian Boguang would get you such a divine weapon… Zhu Wushi found it hard to describe Zhang Lingyu’s extravagance. Did he really have so many divine weapons that he couldn’t put them all down?

Or perhaps there’s a bigger conspiracy behind it all.

“Haitang, His Majesty is also very interested in your Chengying Sword. What do you think?”

“Reporting to Godfather, it’s not that Haitang is reluctant to part with them, but according to the rules of Lingyu’s lineage, if they are given to someone else or taken away, the Sword-Eating Ancestor will take action to retrieve these weapons that have been given away. Lingyu didn’t say what realm that person was, but they are definitely not below the Innate Grandmaster realm, or even above the Innate realm. It is said that they are an old monster who has lived for three Jiazi, a living immortal.”

Zhu Wushi was very surprised after hearing this, his eyes filled with reluctance, but he still put the sword back into the specially made scabbard and returned it to his “adopted son”: “Since that’s the case, then let it go. Your adoptive father will explain to the Emperor for you.”

“Begonia thanks her godfather.”

At this moment, Zhu Wushi seemed to remember something again and asked Haitang directly, “Zhang Lingyu is currently taking the provincial examination in Yingtian Prefecture, right?”

“Yes, the first exam should be over, and we’re preparing for the second one.”

“Well, then you, Haitang, will represent our Dragon Guard Manor in the Battle of Songshan. The Yihua Palace is no small matter, and the Five Mountains Sword Sect must not fall into the hands of the Eastern Depot.”

“Haitang obeys.”

Shangguan Haitang took back her Chengying Sword and left her adoptive father’s place.

Everything went exactly as Zhang Lingyu had predicted. The young emperor was indeed tempted and shamelessly asked his adoptive father to ask for it.

However, the appearance of the Sword-Eating Ancestor only revealed a bit of his strength and terror, proving that his loyal and patriotic adoptive father was indeed a man of great righteousness.

At this point, Shangguan Haitang still held a sliver of affection for her adoptive father, and Zhang Weihao didn’t speak ill of Lao Zhu Luo. After all, he didn’t have a good impression of Zhengde either, and would likely turn against him sooner or later.

Having nearly died myself, I naturally wouldn’t give such a guy a friendly look. I don’t care if you’re a foolish or wise ruler; if you mess with me, I’ll send you to meet the late emperor.

The provincial examinations were mostly held in August, hence they were also called the autumn examinations or autumn examinations.

The regular examinations in the imperial examinations were held on a regular basis, and the examination time would generally not change unless a major event occurred in the country.

Therefore, there is no need to issue a notice in advance; candidates across the country will automatically prepare for the exam.

In the event of celebrations such as the emperor’s birthday or enthronement, additional examinations would be held, known as “enke”.

The chief and deputy examiners who presided over the examinations were appointed by the central government and the examinations were conducted by a temporary organization composed of local government officials.

On the sixth day, the examiners entered the examination hall. First, a banquet was held for them to enter the hall and mount their horses. All officials, both inside and outside the hall, were required to attend the banquet.

After the banquet, the inner curtain official entered the inner curtained area of ​​the back hall. The examiners sealed the door, and the inner and outer curtain officials did not interact. The inner curtain official was not allowed to hear about anything except reviewing the examination papers.

The exam is divided into three sessions, each lasting three days. Candidates must enter the exam venue one day in advance for all three sessions, namely the 8th, 11th, and 14th of the month, and leave the venue the day after the exam.

In most provinces, an examination hall was built in the southeast of the city to serve as the examination venue for the provincial examinations. A large plaque with the words “Examination Hall” was hung in the center of the main gate.

The examination rooms, also called “examination halls” or “dormitories,” were individual rooms within the examination hall used as both examination venues and dormitories for candidates to take exams, eat, and stay overnight. Each candidate had their own single room for the imperial examinations.

The examination hall was strictly supervised. When candidates entered the hall, they were subjected to a thorough body search to prevent them from carrying any “smuggled items”.

Once the candidates enter the examination room, the door must be locked.

During the exam, candidates were required to eat, drink, relieve themselves, and sleep in their designated cells and were not allowed to leave until the exam ended.

The cell was very cramped, with only two wooden planks, one above the other. The upper plank served as a table for writing answers, and the lower plank served as a chair. At night, the two planks were pushed together to make a bed.

Inside the examination hall, a brazier of charcoal and a candle were prepared for the examinees.

Charcoal fire can be used for both heating and cooking.

Candidates are isolated from the outside world during the exam period and have to take care of their own meals.

The invigilators only care about cheating during the exam; they don’t care about any other actions the candidates take in the examination room.

The examinations mainly tested the Four Books, the Five Classics, policy questions, and the eight-legged essay, with the specific subjects varying from dynasty to dynasty.

The provincial education commissioners were not allowed to preside over the provincial examinations. Instead, they were responsible for presiding over the prefectural examinations, selecting scholars, and supervising the education officials of the prefectures and counties.

The provincial examination that Zhang Weihao participated in this time was held on the ninth day of the eighth lunar month. The first session consisted of one essay from the Analects, one from the Doctrine of the Mean, one from the Great Learning, one from Mencius, one five-character eight-line poem, and four essays on the interpretation of the classics. For the first session, he had to write more than 200 characters for each of the three questions on the four books and more than 300 characters for each of the four essays on the interpretation of the classics.

The second session was on the 12th, which tested students on one of the Five Classics, as well as one of the four types of imperial edicts, judgments, memorials, and proclamations. The essays were required to be at least 300 words long, and there were some variations later.

The third session will be held on the 15th. Participants will be asked to express their opinions or views on current affairs and politics by answering five questions, which will combine classical theories with their own interpretations.

The content of the examinations shows that Confucian classics were the main core content of the imperial examinations.

To be honest, actually participating in it was not a pleasant experience. No wonder some candidates with poor health were carried out directly, or even died in the examination room.

Given this terrible environment, if Zhang Weihao hadn’t wanted to comprehend the great celestial phenomena and follow the path of the unity of the three religions, he probably would have used a shadow clone to take the exam for him.

However, shadow clones aren’t very bright, so forget about exams. Even though you have the Mangekyou Sharingan and can use genjutsu and hypnosis, if your exam paper is too bad, that won’t work either.

It’s obvious that Zhang Lingyu, the young master Zhang, is definitely a focus of attention in both the imperial court and the martial arts world, and he must win over the public.

Although rankings are a subjective factor, the good and the bad are obvious at a glance. Even if it is not the best in the eyes of the public, it must be in the top three in the eyes of the public.

Yingtian Prefecture, also known as Jinling, was the most notorious examination hall during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Becoming the top scholar here was extremely difficult, even more so than becoming the top scholar or one of the top three scholars.

Those who could get the top score in the provincial examination were guaranteed to be ranked in the second class, and almost none of them fell out of the second class (except for Tang Bohu, who was disqualified after being reported for cheating in the examination, otherwise he would have been guaranteed at least a second-class Jinshi). That’s how arrogant they were.