Scripture of Days Past

Chu Qiguang was very much surprised to hear this. He knew how obsessed Hao Yongtai was with martial arts. Even though his aptitude was a little lacking, his diligence was nearly unmatched, so it came as a huge surprise that he was planning to skip this edition of the martial examination.

"You probably don't know this yet, but you, our Hao Clan, and the Wu Clan have already had our reputations completely dragged through the mud in the north," Hao Yongtai said with a wry smile.

The fiends under Chu Qiguang primarily gathered intelligence within the county, so he knew very little about things happening outside the county. Only after hearing an explanation from Hao Yongtai did he manage to get a grasp on the situation.

With the advent of the martial examination, majority of aspiring martial artists ended up in the imperial court system, attending martial arts academies in the hopes of becoming wujinshi. After passing the martial examination, one had the opportunity to receive further martial arts education at advanced academies, and those who reached the fourth state and secured the title of wujuren would be able to attend the prestigious northern or southern martial arts academy.

Azure Sun County was situated very close to the northern border, so it naturally fell within the catchment area of the northern martial arts academy. The two most powerful factions in the northern martial arts academy were the Vast Heavens Faction and the Seven Kill Faction.

Among the two, the Vast Heavens Faction was founded by Imperial Duke Chen Qingyun not long after the Great Han Empire was first founded. It incorporated all the best spear techniques under the heavens, including the Fiery Peach Blossom Spear Techniques, which was one of the twenty-five orthodox arts. The disciples of this faction mostly went on to become military or administrative officials.

The former grand secretary, Fei Yi, was once a professor at the northern martial arts academy, as well as one of the current leading figures of the Vast Heavens Faction, making him very respected and revered in the northern martial arts world. Many wujinshi in the officialdom had attended his lectures in the past, and whenever Fei Yi held a public lecture, there would always be countless high-ranking officials and accomplished martial artists in attendance.

"Fei Yi possesses unimaginable sway and influence in the northern martial arts world," Hao Yon

gtai sighed. "Perhaps no one would dare to seek vengeance against Grand Secretary Wu and his clan, and Senior Fei Yi wouldn't be so petty as to target a pair of juniors like us, but all of his followers and those looking to curry favor with him are itching to have a go at us.

"If you take part in the manor test, then you'll have to fight against all of the other martial artists taking part in the test from the nine counties under the Northern Mountain Manor. The ranking will be decided based on the number of wins each person secures. Generally speaking, the first ten to fifteen earn the wusheng title, and the battles are meant to be friendly sparring matches.

"However, for this edition of the martial examination, quite a few people have already declared that they're going to beat us to the point of disability. I'm relatively confident in my martial arts abilities, but if I'm worn down over the course of multiple battles against malicious opponents who are all trying to injure me, then I'm eventually going to fall prey to one of them.

"This is why I suggest we both skip this edition of the martial examination and wait another three years. Given Grand Secretary Wu's political nous, his influence in the imperial court will surely have exceeded Fei Yi's by then, and we'll be safe to take part in the next martial examination."

Chu Qiguang's brows furrowed slightly upon hearing this. He definitely wasn't going to wait another three years, but he also couldn't reveal to Hao Yongtai that he had already reached the fourth state. Thus, he could only insist on registering for this edition of the martial examination, promising to surrender if he encountered an opponent too formidable to overcome.

Hao Yongtai could see that Chu Qiguang wasn't going to be swayed, so he reluctantly allowed him to do as he pleased.

"Fine, I'll squeeze out a spot for you then," Hao Yongtai relented with a resigned sigh. "But make sure to be careful."

Hao Yongtai told Chu Qiguang to go home and await further updates, then called another young man on the training ground into the side hall.

The young man appeared to be in his late twenties, and his name was Ye Ye. He was the heir-apparent of the Ye Clan of Azure Sun County, which had previously colluded with the Ding Clan to profit from the illegal trade with the north.

However, after the fall of the Ding Clan, the Ye Clan immediately drew a firm line in the sand, distancing itself from the disgraced Ding Clan. On top of that, they had also offered a great deal of silver to the Wu Clan, so they had been spared and weren't implicated by the Ding Clan's fall.

"Don't bother registering for this edition of the martial examination," Hao Yongtai said.

"Why?" Ye Ye asked with a dazed expression.

"I'm giving your spot to Chu Qiguang," Hao Yongtai explained. "He wants to take part in the martial examination."

An indignant look appeared on Ye Ye's face upon hearing this.

"He's only been attending Wise Hero Academy for less than a year! Why should he get to take part in the martial examination over me? I heard that he quit the outer school after just a couple of months, so he's not even dedicated to martial arts! Even if he managed to reach the third state, he could only have done so by buying medicine from the Daoist temple! Giving the spot to him would be a complete waste!"

"That's enough!" Hao Yongtai snapped. "I've already made up my mind. I only called you in here today to inform you of my decision, not to ask for your opinion."

Shortly afterward, Ye Ye stormed out of the side hall with a furious expression. The more he thought about the injustice he had suffered, the more enraged and resentful he became.

Following his daily lessons at the academy, he didn't go out to drink and make merry as he normally did. Instead, he went straight to Chu Qiguang's courtyard and began pounding on the door.

Chen Two answered the door, then informed him that Chu Qiguang wasn't home, so Ye Ye asked him where Chu Qiguang had gone.

***

In the textile workshop, Chu Qiguang was checking on the progress of the twelve workers.

They had already produced a prototype water-powered loom, but it was still riddled with problems that had to be fixed. Chu Qiguang was unable to contribute any ideas, so he could only urge the workers to keep at it and fix the issues as soon as possible.

As soon as he left the workshop, Chu Qiguang was greeted by Hao Xiangtong, who seemed to have been waiting for him for quite some time. She looked to be in very high spirits, and her mental state was much better than when Chu Qiguang had last seen her over a month ago.

It looks like she's become a first-state Dao artist, Qiao Zhi remarked from the rooftop with a hint of surprise in his voice.

"Have you begun cultivating Dao arts?" Chu Qiguang asked.

Hao Xiangtong nodded in response with a smug expression. She had reached the first state after just a month of cultivation, after which she paid a visit to Daoist Master Law Origin, who informed her that such rapid progress was only seen in exceptional prodigies.

"I found some books on meditation to read, and it wasn't as difficult as I expected," Hao Xiangtong said. "But that's not why I came to see you today. I heard from my brother that you're going to take part in the martial examination? Have you gone insane? Hasn't he told you that everyone's out to get you?"

Of course, Chu Qiguang remained firm in his stance, and Hao Xiangtong stormed away in frustration after all of her well-intentioned attempts to dissuade him fell on deaf ears.

"These people don't know anything!" Qiao Zhi grumbled. "They all think you're some ignorant fool, but little do they know that you are the one that everyone should fear! Aren't you frustrated at all?"

"Wallowing in frustration isn't going to do me any good," Chu Qiguang replied with a composed smile. "The martial examination is coming up soon anyway, and I'll silence all of my doubters with my actions."

Not long after Hao Xiangtong left, Chu Qiguang encountered the furious Ye Ye on his way home.