5: Ancient Fengyang

March 1st, Year 108 of the Great Ming Empire's Revival.

Fengyang No. 1 High School, Fengyang County, Lingnan Prefecture, Southern Yue Province.

From early morning, the area was bustling with people. The school gate was packed with students and parents, and from various directions in the distance, people continuously streamed in. They were all there to participate in Fengyang No. 1 High School's annual Awakening Ceremony.

Among the crowd, a chubby young man was looking around. It was Duan Hu, accompanied by his parents. Duan Hu was looking for his best friend, Long Yuan. After their phone call yesterday, he felt Long Yuan seemed a bit off, and since Long Yuan hadn't appeared yet, he was starting to get anxious. So, he kept checking his phone to see if Long Yuan had replied to his messages…

Long Yuan, one could say, had experienced a near-death situation yesterday. Both mentally and physically, he had expended a great deal of effort, so he slept very soundly. Fortunately, an alarm clock woke him up. This alarm clock not only made a sound but also had a slight Xuan Power stimulus, which finally roused him from deep sleep. Opening his eyes, he stared at the room in a daze for a while, until his consciousness finally returned, and he reconfirmed his identity. He quickly got up to wash and brush, habitually wanting to style his hair, but then he suddenly remembered that he needed to develop cautiously and remain inconspicuous in the future, so there was no need to look cool. He simply ran his hands through his hair a few times, changed into his school uniform, and quickly rushed out of the residential area. He waited for a bus at the bus stop not far from the entrance, and also bought a breakfast. Originally, his predecessor usually cooked for himself, but these past few days, he had been Cultivating behind closed doors and hadn't gone out to buy food, so the food in the refrigerator was already depleted.

He habitually pulled out his phone and saw a message from Duan Hu asking about him. Long Yuan immediately replied that he had left. He looked up and saw a bus, whose appearance was vastly different from those on Earth, slowly approaching. As soon as the door opened, he immediately jumped on. Not many people took the bus from this residential area, as most residents here were either rich or noble, and almost every household had a private car. Therefore, there were many empty seats on the bus. Students rode for half price. He swiped his card, chose a window seat, and ate his breakfast while looking at the streetscape outside, recalling his predecessor's understanding of the Great Ming Empire's education system.

The Great Ming Empire's education system had changed significantly compared to before the mutation. Previously, the imperial examination system was in place. Students generally had to go through the county, provincial, metropolitan, and palace examinations to determine their final scores. The quality of their eight-legged essays largely determined whether they would be selected and their ranking. For a scholar to become a Jinshi, he truly had to read widely. The volume of reading and comprehension required would certainly not be less than those 'small-town test-takers' on Earth; it might even be greater. Some people studied from childhood to old age and still couldn't reach the palace examination stage. Some couldn't even pass the first stage, remaining a Tong Sheng (child scholar) even at seventy or eighty. Of course, there were also Geniuses who became Jinshi at a young age, truly making others envious.

However, such Geniuses were rare, truly like a Phoenix's feather or a Dragon's scale. Most people only had a chance to reach the palace examination stage in their thirties or forties. For them, becoming a Jinshi at fifty was actually still quite young, as the vast majority of people never even touched the threshold of a Jinshi in their lifetime.

However, with the world's mutation, the emergence of Profound Qi, beasts transforming into mutated beasts, and the flourishing of the Human Race's Martial Dao, the original social order began to collapse. Although the Great Ming Empire continued, people's Concept (concepts/perceptions) had undergone earth-shattering changes. They began to realize the importance of Martial Dao Cultivation, and they all highly revered those powerhouses who could subdue powerful mutated beasts to protect their homes and country. Young people dreamed of one day becoming such important figures. Thus, an era where the strong were respected and the weak were preyed upon began!

Initially, the Great Ming Empire implemented a dual-track management system between Mortals and Xuan Practitioners. That is, Mortals were still managed according to the old system, while Xuan Practitioners were managed under a new system. However, as the number of Xuan Practitioners grew and various forces became stronger, their infiltration into Mortal society reached an all-pervasive level. Coupled with the increasing strength of mutated beasts and their growing encroachment on the Empire's borders, the territory controlled by the Empire was constantly being compressed. Clearly, the dual-track system was no longer viable, so reforms were forced, and a system of Xuan Practitioner management was fully implemented. Even in Mortal areas, the administrators were Xuan Practitioners, because only Xuan Practitioners could protect the safety of these Mortals. Conversely, Mortals were also one of the sources of Mystics; every year, new people with Cultivation Aptitude could be born among Mortals, so the two were actually inseparable.

As for the current education system, the Great Ming Empire officially implemented a three-tier system: primary school, middle school, and academy. Primary school belonged to children and youth education. Middle school was somewhat similar to the junior high and high school stages on Earth, while academies were for elite university education.

Fengyang County had three official middle schools, and Fengyang No. 1 High School was the best one, almost encompassing the best students in the county. It was quite difficult to get in.

It must be said that Long Yuan's predecessor had poor Aptitude and was an average student, yet he could enter Fengyang No. 1 High School. This, of course, was thanks to Dragon Snow's financial power; otherwise, he wouldn't have had the qualifications.

Thinking of this, Long Yuan's spirits lifted slightly. 'That's right,' he thought. 'Although my Cultivation Aptitude isn't great, when it comes to academics, this is my advantage.' As the youngest expert in the field of astronomical physics in Huaguo on 21st-century Earth, he had also crossed a single-plank bridge through a myriad of competitors. The number of books he had read and problems he had solved was simply immense. Moreover, besides his astrophysics major, he usually enjoyed reading all sorts of other books—humanities, geography, history, literature, travel, music, and so on. He even formed a band in college. Compared to these middle school students now, he definitely had strong confidence!

If he claimed to be second, would anyone dare to claim to be first?

"Wait, this idea is a bit dangerous…" Long Yuan suddenly felt a shock in his heart.

Being good at academics was good, but being too outstanding would also draw attention, and once he drew attention, he probably wouldn't be able to stay low-key!

His predecessor was an inconspicuous student at Fengyang No. 1 High School, mediocre in all aspects. If he suddenly displayed performance vastly different from before, it would definitely attract others' attention, and danger might follow.

Long Yuan took a deep breath, calmed himself slightly, thought carefully, and his Ideas (train of thought) opened up a bit. He believed that studying hard was still very necessary, as it would help him integrate better into this world and better cope with many things he would encounter in the future. This was an important step to protect himself, so he must read widely, understand worldly affairs, and not overlook any details; the more thorough, the better. As long as he didn't show it during school exams and assessments, and continued to perform as mediocrely as his predecessor, he could stay low-key and avoid arousing suspicion.

Having made this decision, he finally had the mood to properly look at the streetscape outside. He saw that Fengyang City was somewhat similar to the core areas of first-tier cities in Huaguo on Earth. Although there were fewer skyscrapers, overall, the buildings were dense, and residential buildings, shops, and entertainment venues were everywhere. Many shop signs were somewhat incomprehensible, and the goods sold inside might be quite different from those in Huaguo. But as a central hub of the county, people came and went, and traffic flowed like water, indicating a highly developed commercial scene.

What Long Yuan found quite novel was that people's clothing had a rather ancient style, mostly robes. However, those who clearly did more physical work wore simpler and more practical attire. There were also some people who looked extraordinary, with clear signs of Cultivation, and their robes looked very expensive at a glance, clearly having their own value, likely providing some protective function.

"Huh?! Why are there animals running on the road over there?! And a bird flying?!"

Long Yuan suddenly noticed this strange sight and couldn't help but widen his eyes, feeling somewhat shocked. Because not only were cars running on the road, but there were also animals—oh, right, Xuan Beasts or mutated beasts. If people from his previous life saw this, they would definitely exclaim, 'Good heavens!'

With a shift in his mind, his predecessor's memories surged up, and he finally understood what was going on.

It turned out that the main roads in various base cities of the Great Ming Empire were generally divided into two sides: one was the Mortal Road, exclusively for Mortals and ordinary Martial Apprentices, and the other was the Xuan Practitioner Road, exclusively for powerhouses above the Martial Artist Realm. The bus he was currently on was running on the Mortal Road, while those riding on Xuan Beasts and Xuan Birds were on the Xuan Practitioner Road.

Mortals, needless to say, would probably be terrified to walk on the Xuan Practitioner Road, as they could be injured by Xuan Beasts at any moment. Martial Apprentices referred to those with Cultivation Aptitude whose Martial Dao Realm was not yet high. Although they were stronger than Mortals, they weren't significantly stronger. This group's Realm included the Xuan Skin Realm of the Martial Apprentice Early Stage, the Xuan Flesh Realm of the Middle Stage, and the Xuan Bone Realm of the Late Stage.

If one could Breakthrough the Xuan Bone Realm, their strength would experience a small leap, becoming a Martial Artist. Compared to Mortals and Martial Apprentices, the status of a Martial Artist was much higher. They could guard base cities at the small town level, or become a Martial Arts Hall master there, or marry and take concubines, establishing their own small Family without issue. This group's Realm included the Xuan Organ Realm of the Martial Artist Early Stage, the Xuan Blood Realm of the Middle Stage, and the Xuan Meridian Realm of the Late Stage.

Many Martial Artists could own their own Xuan Beasts or Xuan Birds. These Xuan Beasts and Xuan Birds could not only serve as their mounts but also as their helpers in combat. Therefore, some people were accustomed to taking them out. To protect the safety of Mortals and maintain traffic order, the Great Ming Empire generally opened up dedicated Xuan Practitioner Roads on main roads with heavy pedestrian traffic, exclusively for those above the Martial Artist Realm.

Of course, people who went out with mounts were still relatively few, because the cost of owning such a mount was extremely high. Not only was there the cost of feeding, but also taming and training. The investment in this aspect was simply a bottomless pit; only wealthy families could truly afford it. Therefore, these domesticated Xuan Beasts and Xuan Birds generally evolved from former domestic animals and poultry. The most common were relatively docile species such as horses, elephants, cattle, sheep, deer, donkeys, dogs, geese, and swans. These species had significantly lower feeding and taming costs and were also more obedient. However, some powerhouses could subdue the more powerful mutated beasts and mutated birds from the wild, which was beyond the reach of ordinary people.

Since base cities generally had no-fly zones, only allowing human aircraft, avian mounts were restricted to low-altitude flight and had specific flight paths. Therefore, there was basically no need to worry about mid-air collisions between birds and aircraft…

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