156: Fourth Generation: Overlord (52)

The Imperial Examination continued in an indescribably solemn and impassioned atmosphere.

Having experienced the test of life and death just now, and witnessing Xu Yuan's god-like and prison-like strength along with his absolute protection of the students, the remaining students cast aside all stray thoughts. All that remained in their hearts was infinite awe for their monarch and a burning determination to serve their country.

They wrote with fervor, pouring their lifelong learning and full-hearted ambitions into the policy essays beneath their brushes.

The Imperial Examination soon reached its Perfection.

When the final rankings of the Imperial Examination were solemnly announced by the officials of the Ministry of Rites, and spread to every county and township of the Great Shang Dynasty at the fastest speed through official notices, the entire Dynasty seethed with excitement and shock!

The rankings themselves were certainly eye-catching, as various forces watched to see if their own disciples had made the list.

But what truly caused an uproar and left all who heard it in disbelief was a name hanging high upon the Imperial Bulletin, ranked tenth—Chen Wang.

He was not from a Noble Family, nor was he even a Cultivator, but a Mortal!

Before this, "Promoting talent regardless of whether one is Immortal or Mortal" was mostly seen as a grand but perhaps unattainable ideal of the Shang King, or a slogan used to pressure the Noble Families.

Even though Official Schools recruited Mortal children for free, most people—including many Mortals themselves—believed this would at most allow them to become literate and slightly skilled, so that being a better clerk or craftsman in the future would already be a heavenly blessing.

No one had ever dared to imagine that a Mortal could truly stand out in the highest-level examination, which gathered the country's Prodigies, to be listed on the Golden Bulletin alongside Cultivators, and even outrank many Cultivators at the Qi Condensation Stage!

"Tenth place... Chen Wang... a Mortal?! How... how is this possible!"

"It's absolutely true! It's written clearly on the Imperial Bulletin!"

"It is said that this youth possesses startling talent in Mathematics, Construction, and Agricultural Administration. His policy essay was highly praised even by several Foundation Establishment Cultivators!"

"Immortal and Mortal... can they truly serve as officials in the same court?"

"There is hope for my son! Though my child has no Spiritual Root, he is clever! Quick, go register at the Official School!"

"..."

In every street, alley, and field, countless people hurried to tell one another, their eyes brimming with tears.

They saw an unprecedented, tangible hope—a hope that did not rely on an illusory Spiritual Root, but on one's own wisdom and hard work to change their destiny and gain the same status and respect as a practitioner!

Is it difficult for an ordinary person to surpass a Cultivator in knowledge and statecraft?

The answer is: extremely difficult.

When a Cultivator practices, they absorb Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi to temper themselves, which brings more than just the power to move mountains and seas.

As their Realm improves, their minds are similarly nourished by Spiritual Power, becoming sharp-eyed and clear-eared, with agile thinking. Their memory, comprehension, and deductive abilities are far beyond what a Mortal can compare to.

A Cultivator at the Mid-Stage of Qi Refining might have a learning efficiency ten or even dozens of times higher than a hardworking Mortal.

Not to mention a Foundation Establishment Cultivator; once their Divine Sense is first formed, they can easily achieve photographic memory and multi-tasking.

In fields requiring vast accumulation of knowledge and complex thinking, they naturally occupy a massive advantage.

This is like a chasm, an Innate difference brought about by different levels of life.

However, Mortals possess a quantity that Cultivators cannot match, and with it, the miracles belonging to "groups" and "extreme individuals."

The Great Shang Dynasty has a vast territory and hundreds of millions of subjects.

Under this suffocatingly large base, some true "anomalies" are bound to be born.

They might not have a Spiritual Root and cannot sense Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, but they are born with a Comprehension Ability that is almost like a "Prodigy," an unfathomable creativity, or a "Talent" in a certain field that transcends common logic and intuition.

Chen Wang was such an "anomaly."

He could not draw Qi into his body like a Cultivator, but he had an almost instinctive sensitivity to numbers, shapes, and structures.

Complex hydraulic blueprints—he could grasp the key points after one look and could even point out subtle hidden dangers and areas for optimization that even the designers had not noticed.

An abstruse Construction manual—he could quickly understand its essence and apply it, proposing improvement plans that even Foundation Establishment Cultivators marveled at.

His existence was like the brightest star in the night sky; though lonely, it was incredibly dazzling, proving that in the Peak of wisdom, the limits of a "Mortal" could also be reached and even briefly surpass some "Cultivators."

Xu Yuan's implementation of the new policies and opening of Official Schools was precisely to unearth this one-in-a-billion possibility!

What he gave was not just a chance for one Chen Wang to rise above others, but a visible, touchable hope for those hundreds of millions of Mortals destined to have no connection with the path of immortality!

This hope was more powerful than any hollow slogan.

It made the farmer facing the yellow earth and turning his back to the sky urge his children to go to the Official School to learn to read and write after their hard labor; it made the urban poor struggling on the poverty line willing to scrimp and save to send their most spiritual child to study; it reignited the fighting spirit of those scholars from Commoner Families who had full talent but wasted their years due to their birth.

They knew that there was now a Peak ahead that could be climbed, and a role model on the road who could be followed.

Even if the road remained narrow and competition remained cruel, at least the road was open!

Xu Yuan's prestige among the people reached a brand new Peak at this moment.

Countless families spontaneously set up Longevity Tablets for him in their homes, offering incense and feeling grateful for his benevolence in opening up a time of peace and granting them hope.

This massive and pure Power Of Will, like trickling streams merging into a river, made Great Shang's National Fortune more solid and heavy, filled with vigorous vitality.

And those remaining Noble Families and traditional Cultivators who originally had doubts about "Promoting talent regardless of background" or who had complied in appearance but rebelled in heart, found all their wishful thinking and resentment completely shattered before the name "Chen Wang."

"To actually... truly let a Mortal squeeze into the top ten..."

"His Majesty is determined to break the rules of tens of millions of years!"

"Even a Mortal can enter the halls of power through talent. If we Noble Families do not discard our arrogance and fully adapt to these new rules, I fear that in a few decades, there will no longer be a place for us to stand in the court or in important local positions!"

In the court, the officials from Noble Families looked at Chen Wang, who was dressed in the robes of a Vice Director of the Ministry of Works and possessed a calm gaze despite having no Spiritual Power. Their feelings were complex.

They had to admit that this young emperor possessed not only the force to suppress everything but also the boldness and wisdom to break old conventions and reshape order.

They understood that the era of monopolizing power purely by relying on Bloodline and Spiritual Roots was slowly coming to an end.

Inside a quiet room in the deep palace, Xu Yuan sat cross-legged with his eyes slightly closed.

In his perception, the entire territory of the Great Shang Dynasty seemed to turn into a huge, flowing scroll.

The National Fortune originally condensed from suppressing internal revolts and slaying external enemies was surging and sharp, carrying the bloody color of conquest and the aura of metal and iron.

But now, this scroll was being infused with new colors.

Unlike the blood-evil Luck condensed through military conquest and a reign of terror, this Power Of Will coming from the inside out and from the hearts of hundreds of millions was purer, more stable, and possessed greater growth potential.

It made Great Shang's National Fortune no longer just a rushing river, but more like a towering giant tree that was striking deep roots and spreading its branches and leaves, its vitality never-ending.