Chapter 16: Merit-based Settlement

Now that he had a weapon, Wei Yuan chose the heavy armor that boasted the highest defense. The helmet came with a visor, and the armor extended all the way to the backs of his hands, and the soles of his feet. It almost covered him from head to toe and rendered the sword most candidates chose for this martial test useless.

In fact, there were several armor-penetrating weapons in the equipment chest such as maces, truncheons, and triangular daggers. However, he couldn’t find a single person wielding such a weapon probably because they weren’t elegant or imposing enough.

The equipment chest disappeared after he had chosen his weapon and armor. The heavy armor materialized directly on Wei Yuan’s body and fitted itself perfectly. It was definitely heavy armor alright. He could only jog after putting it on.

It was at this moment another two candidates ascended the hill. They were both wearing blue. The guy leading the way had a small build—he was the first scout who visited the hill—whereas the other guy following beside him was the opposite. He was only a tad shorter than Wei Yuan and looked pretty brawny.

The scrawny scout was telling his companion, “Look, there’s a clueless big guy hanging out on this hill all on his own, and he doesn’t even know how to use a weapon. We’re going to team up and grab a kill first, o…”

The scrawny scout trailed off when he saw Wei Yuan standing at the top of the hill while clad in heavy armor and wielding an incredibly long spear. Whatever he was going to say was forgotten just like that.

Wei Yuan didn’t waste his breath on them. He simply strode forward and thrust his spear twice in rapid succession, skewering them both. Both candidates were wearing light leather armor that boasted an elegant design and didn’t impede their movements. They might as well be wearing paper before the spear.

In the south zone of the illusory realm, Li Zhi was facing a total of one hundred and twenty candidates with his armor donned and his sword in hand. He had divided them into four divisions—forward, center, left and right—and they were standing in an orderly military formation in front of him.

Li Zhi was deeply satisfied at the state of his forces. Before the exam began, he and a few trusted confidants had painstakingly rehearsed a number of military formations. Just now, they had spent a considerable amount of time organizing his troops as well. As a result, the group of one hundred and twenty now bore the semblance of a well-trained elite force.

A dozen or so candidates were standing outside the army formation. They were all wearing dark yellow. These were people Li Zhi hadn’t recruited, but chose to make their way over because they bore the same colors. Right now, a brawny candidate wielding a saber was standing in front of them and pointing at a small mound not far away from him, ordering, “This is the spot you’ll be guarding. You will not take a single step backward unless I give you the order to do so. Also, hand over all your pills before you head over. We’ll be using them uniformly!”

The mound was directly in front of the army formation. They were responsible for stopping the enemy’s charge. It was easily one of the most dangerous locations on the battlefield, but they were asked to hand over their life-saving pills as well. One charge from the enemy was probably enough to annihilate them all.

The small group of candidates weren’t stupid. One person immediately leaped forward and yelled, “We came to join you, and this is how you treat us? Anyone guarding that spot will die in the first exchange, and how many points can we possibly get from that? If we do as you say, we won’t even get a spot in the Scarlet Tide Sect when all is said and done! Why the heck should we obey you when there is everything to lose and nothing to gain?”

Li Zhi slowly turned to face the candidate, his expression unreadable. “Defying orders on the battlefield and disrupting morale? Behead him!”

The candidate froze. He was still processing what was happening when the brawny candidate wielding a saber swung his weapon and took his head clean off!

The headless corpse collapsed to the ground and dissolved into motes of light, vanishing.

The remaining candidates trembled in fear and lost all will to resist. They obediently handed over their pills. Although the rules explicitly stated that killing a teammate would lower one’s evaluation, they didn’t specify how much. Besides, the fact that Li Zhi dared to kill a teammate to establish his authority proved that he didn’t care about the rule at all, not to mention that it wasn’t him who took action.

Li Zhi then turned to face his army and declared loudly, “As you’ve seen, no words are spoken in jest in the military! This is the martial test, yes, but it is also the real battlefield! As our numbers are fewer than theirs, it is more important than ever for us to unite as one. The enemy on the opposite is nothing but a rabble. If you follow my orders to the letter, then I, Li Zhi, will lead you all to crush their camp and enter an immortal sect!”

The candidates really knew that their hopes were slim, but the words “enter an immortal sect” still spurred them greatly.

Inside the floating hall, the six examiners had taken their seats as usual. They only needed to look down to see everything in the illusory realm.

The old Confucianist was stroking his beard smilingly, saying, “It took Li Zhi just one day to organize a bunch of kids into something resembling an army. Not only that, he knows how to establish authority through killing and motivating his troops. Duke Hui’en is a lucky man to have sowed a son like him.”

He did not say that Li Zhi resembled his father, however. Everyone here knew what kind of person Duke Hui’en was like.

The middle-aged Confucianist also cupped his hand as a gesture of respect and said, “You’ve all seen how Li Zhi is in the past two days. This final test carries immense significance for him, so I ask that you show him some leniency when you grade him. The academy will naturally repay you for the favor.”

The younger cultivator suddenly cracked a grin and said, “You both want to guarantee Li Zhi the top spot and build momentum with it so that he can soar to greater heights in the future. That desire isn’t wrong. Alas, there is a young miss who hates losing and also wants to take the top spot for herself. What should we do, I wonder?”

The middle-aged Confucianist’s thick eyebrows knitted slightly before he asked in an earnest tone, “Miss Bao is quarreling purely for the sake of her pride. It wouldn’t change anything for if she claims the top spot or not, so it should be fine for her to surrender this competition, right?”

The younger cultivator chuckled. “Is that so? You can tell this to the Bao Clan yourself then. It’s not like I have the power to change anything!”

“We will reward Miss Bao handsomely if she is willing to help us achieve our goal.”

The younger cultivator snorted in disdain. “As if there is anything you shabby scholars can produce anything that could win even a side-eye from the young miss!”

Seeing that the atmosphere was growing tenser by the second, the older cultivator stroked his long beard lightly and let out a cough. “If a compromise can’t be reached, then let merit be the decider.”

The middle-aged Confucianist nodded once and said, “That would be for the best.”

The younger cultivator threw the older cultivator a glare before looking at Daoist Fu Feng and the Buddhist monk. The monk had stopped acting up completely after recruiting Duan Yusheng, and his grading was no less impartial. However, this also meant that there was no way for anyone to sway his mind. That was why the examiners had given up trying to draw him to their sides a long time ago.

As for Daoist Fu Feng, everyone knew that he was a cunning old fox. Two tests had passed, and still no one had a clue who was the one he was trying to protect. The only reason the younger cultivator threw him a glance was because it was better than doing nothing. He wasn’t expecting an actual response from him.

Out of the six examiners, every examiner had different standpoints besides the two Confucianists from the Four Sages Academies. They all had their own schemes, and they all had a candidate they wanted to protect. That was why the Four Sages Academies examiners held a massive advantage over the others during their evaluation process. If there was someone they wished to suppress, they could almost singlehandedly push them all the way down to the benchmark of grotto-heaven. Only the Bao Clan was unafraid of their tactics because they were at least on the same level as the Four Sages Academies, if not stronger. This was why they dared to fight for the top spot openly.

The younger cultivator was alone in this room. Naturally, he was at a great disadvantage compared to the two Confucianists. It didn’t take a genius to know that those two would grade the young miss as low as possible. The only way he could turn this around was to find an ally of his own so that they could pull the same thing on Li Zhi.

The younger cultivator wore a look of resentment, but he was really thinking who he could recruit to his side and when was the best time to give the Four Sages Academies a knife through the rib. However, he couldn’t think of a solution no matter what he tried. The situation was simply hopeless.

The younger cultivator was at his wit’s end when suddenly, Daoist Fu Feng spoke up, “The two of you have taken great care of our disciple in the past two tests. After a long and careful deliberation, I have come to the conclusion that I simply must repay the favor. I ask that you look forward to it.”

Naturally, the younger cultivator was pleasantly surprised, and the Two Confucianists from the Four Sages Academies were stunned. They had no idea why Daoist Fu Feng had suddenly decided to butt heads against them. Wasn’t he afraid that the two of them would join hands and thoughtlessly grade the candidates fighting for the Palace of Absolute Beginning’s spots, thus ruining his business?

The old Confucianist’s long eyebrows knitted together so firmly that they almost looked vertical. He said coldly, “In that case, don’t blame me for what happens next!”

Daoist Fu Feng merely shrugged and motioned for him to do as he pleased.

The old Confucianist looked ashen with anger. For a time, he just sat there looking like a million thoughts were racing inside his head. From time to time, he would exchange glances with the middle-aged Confucianist.

It was at this moment a loud bang caught all of their attention. Someone had kicked open the door of the examiner hall!