On the Avenue

On this day, many people looked up at the sky.

Taiwan Novel Network →𝘁𝘄𝗸𝗮𝗻.𝗰𝗼𝗺

There was one less cloud in the sky of Xijing.

That cloud had covered Xijing for eight months, from nothing to something, getting bigger and bigger, becoming a dark cloud in everyone's heart, and it was difficult to clear up.

When the cloud came, Xijing's officialdom was shaken. The cabinet chief resigned, the seal-holding eunuch resigned, the three officials, the Taifu, the Taibao, and the Taishi resigned, the left and right governors of the five armies resigned, the left and right pillars of civil and military affairs resigned, the left and right censors resigned, and half of the six ministers resigned!

After the cloud came, many people in Xijing did die. Even if some people resigned, they could not escape. They became guests in the cloud, hanging in the sky dozens of miles away, vivid and lifelike.

The people of Xijing were panicked, and everyone wanted to find the culprit and hand him over to avoid implicating themselves. But they didn't know much about what happened eleven years ago. Under such pressure, they spent eight months.

Now, the cloud has finally gone. Many people are relieved.

The chief and deputy chief of the Sitianjian hurriedly ordered the Sichen officials and a group of doctors and clerks under their command to get busy and search for the whereabouts of the cloud.

Many heavenly listeners also became busier. Whenever you look up, you can always see a few heavenly listeners with big ears flying in the air. Outside the city of Xijing, there are many ears growing on some trees and grass, and even on the cliffs, there are ears of all sizes. The kings and masters among the heavenly listeners have also been dispatched.

Some great souls have gone deep into the underworld, patrolling around, searching for the cloud to hide in the underworld.

When the cloud was there, they were terrified, fearing that they would be found.

After the cloud left, they were worried about gains and losses, thinking that it was not under their surveillance, and there was always some danger, and they always wanted to find the cloud again. This busyness did not affect Chen Shi.

He came to Xinxiang Guild Hall and found Hu Feifei and other scholars from Xinxiang, and also found Tian Yue'e, Huang Fengnian, Fu Xiu and other scholars who were traveling to Beijing for the imperial examination, and invited them to practice in Xiaozhutian together.

These days, Tian Yue'e, Huang Fengnian and others stayed in Xijing, and they had to spend money on food, clothing and other expenses. They came from the countryside, and they barely made up enough money for the travel expenses before the exam. Some of them didn't even have enough money for the travel expenses. They relied on drawing talismans for people and killing evil spirits to make a living along the way.

When they arrived in Xijing, Hu Feifei took them to find Hongshan Hall and asked them to join Hongshan Hall as talisman masters. These days, they helped the people around Xijing to kill evil spirits and earn some money to make a living, and their cultivation strength also improved a lot.

The Xiaozhutian is hidden in the fox grape mirror. It seems to be just a mirror, but the internal space is extremely vast, even larger than Xijing City. The righteousness of heaven and earth inside is extremely abundant, and practicing inside is dozens of times better than outside.

Everyone entered the Xiaozhutian, looked around, and was amazed.

"The sun, moon, stars and rivers here are all wrong. When you cultivate to the Return to Void Realm, don't practice according to them." Chen Shi ordered.

Hu Guanghan smiled and said, "Return to Void Realm? Chen Jieyuan, you think too highly of us. In this life, we can never cultivate to the Return to Void Realm. It's already amazing to be able to cultivate to the Transformation of God and the God of Descend. Even if we follow the right person, we can only be the Refining of Void at most."

After this, Fang Wuji, Pang Ga and others nodded. Chen Shi was puzzled and asked, "Why is this?"

Tian Yue'e laughed heartily and said, "For us, cultivating to the Transformation of God Realm should have reached the top. But the next two realms, the God of Descend and the Refining of Void Realm, are realms given by the True Gods of the Sky, and have nothing to do with cultivation. Therefore, we can only cultivate to the Refining of Void Realm at most. To go further, we need skills, money, Taoist companions, resources and other things. Without money, no one can go up.

Chen Shi suddenly realized, "So that's it. No wonder Lord Sun Yisheng has been trapped in the Refining of Void Realm and has never been able to break through. "

Sun Yisheng is the ambassador of Guanghuiku. He has cultivated to the peak of the Refining Void Realm. It is estimated that he lacks three of the following three, namely, wealth, companion, land, and law, and has never been able to break through.

Chen Shi also thought that many officials like Sun Yisheng in Xijing seemed to be trapped in the Refining Void Realm and could not go any further. For example, some of the soldiers of the Shenjiying who chased them on the road were in this realm.

It can be seen that the blessing of the True God and the granting of two realms have narrowed the gap between ordinary cultivators and the children of aristocratic families.

Although Chen Shi taught them according to their aptitude and passed on various skills from the True King's Tomb to them, having the law was not enough. They also needed wealth, companion, and land.

The so-called wealth is naturally not difficult to understand. When practicing, you need money to consolidate and break through the realm. Refining elixirs to treat injuries and diseases, creating talismans, talismans, and even magic weapons also requires a huge amount of wealth.

Land is similar to the small heavens. , Dongtianfudi. Even Chen Shi felt it was very inconvenient to practice at home or in Guangjiku. He had the blessed land of Xiaozhutian and Xiaomiao, but it was still like this. Others didn't even have a place to practice.

And "lover" doesn't simply refer to a partner, but a Taoist partner. The so-called Taoist partner is a fellow Taoist. It can be a senior from the sect, or a fellow disciple or a partner who practices together. He can call back his soul and infant when his soul leaves the body, save his life when he is possessed by the devil, and fight side by side when he encounters the enemy. Moreover, the greatest role of a Taoist partner is to help him break through the realm at a critical period.

Wealth, companion, land and law, these four are crucial to practice.

If one or two are missing, there is still a possibility of breakthrough, but most cultivators often lack all four.

Chen Shi smiled and said, "If you can't practice, just come to me. I will help you practice!"

There are only three days left before the exam. During these three days, two to three hundred people have gathered in Xiaozhutian, all of whom are practicing hard. It is rare for everyone to encounter a blessed land and practice in the small heavens, forgetting to eat or sleep.

Chen Shi is also practicing in Xiaozhutian, and Yuanying is gradually getting bigger, and now he is like a four or five-year-old child. The Nascent Soul body is the limit of his cultivation. Only then can he be compatible with the soul and become the Yuanshen.

He didn't go home these days, and Chen Tang didn't take it seriously. He continued to go to and from court every day, go to the Ministry of Household Affairs for official business, and didn't return until evening.

On the afternoon of the third day, Chen Shi invited everyone out of Xiaozhutian and said: "Everyone, you study hard in the cold window, practice three nines in winter and three summers in summer, all for the sake of fame. Tomorrow, in the examination room, prepare I wish you all the best!"

More than two hundred candidates bowed in return and said with a smile: "If it weren't for Chen Jieyuan's cultivation, we would have lost our reputation. I don't know when we would have the chance to stand out."

"I dare not forget the kindness of cultivation in this life!"

Chen Shi separated from them and walked towards Chen Mansion.

When he was passing by Chengdu Street, he suddenly heard a voice laughing: "Chen Jieyuan, stay." When Chen Shi heard this voice, he was slightly shaken, stopped and looked at the sound.

He saw a young man in his twenties standing across the street in Chengdu, facing him across a two-foot-wide road. Between the two of them, there was a bustling city.

The young master was followed by several people, two of whom were familiar faces, namely Fang Tan and Wei Xize, the meritorious officers of the Fu Zheng Pavilion. The young master is handsome, tall and well-proportioned, with no excess muscles visible on his body.

His skin is fair, his facial features are just right, his nose is straight, neither big nor small, his eyes are bright, his upper and lower lips are neither thick nor thin, his earlobes are plump, and his beard is cleanly shaven.

There is a red mole between his eyebrows, whether it is a cinnabar dot or a natural one. He wears a purple gold crown on his head, ties up his hair, and decorates it with a red ball. When he walks, the red ball dangles, which is really eye-catching.

He wears white long trousers, a red jacket on the outside, a green jade belt around his waist, and a pair of climbing boots with white soles and black tops, with gold threads embroidered on the dragon and silver threads on the clouds, which should be A treasure that has been tempered thousands of times.

When Chen Shi saw these boots, he knew that there must be six Ding Liujia inside the boots. "Sir?"

Chen Shi continued to walk forward and said calmly, "I heard your voice through the Thousand Miles Telephone Talisman after I killed Taipingmen in Phoenix Ridge.

The young master was walking on the road across the street, separated from the crowd, and said with a smile: "Since I entered Beijing, I have been practicing in seclusion these days, and I am leaving today. Many people in Fuzheng Pavilion knew that I was coming to see you, so they all He tried to dissuade me, saying that you are a lawless person and it is not appropriate for me to come to see you. But I am here anyway. I must see the famous scholar in person and have a heart-to-heart talk with you. "

Their voices were not loud, but they reached each other's ears clearly. Chen Shi said: "You have seen it now. You can go back."

The young master looked at the road ahead and said sincerely: "I think there must be a misunderstanding between you and me. Chen Jieyuan, I firmly believe that you are a man with great ambitions. You were born in the countryside and have seen evil spirits causing harm to the countryside. The struggles of all sentient beings also show that officials are more evil than evil spirits. This world is like a cage, trapping you and me. I think you also have the desire to change the world."

There is a convincing power in his voice, and he always attracts the attention of others when talking.

"However, this was not the case in the era of the True King. In the era of the True King, the demons gave their heads, the people lived and worked in peace and contentment, their old age was fulfilled, their strength was useful, their children were able to grow, and their illnesses were cured."

The young master said, "At that time, there were few evil spirits and could not form a climate. But all this changed with the death of the true king. Over the years, the people have become increasingly miserable, the evil spirits have become more and more rampant, and demons have bloomed like flowers, everywhere. The government and the public have accumulated abuses. Long , Officials do not make decisions for the people, but want to maintain their dominance and make their descendants prosperous. The big families control the court, the small families control the local areas, and the scholars become the clear stream, only talking and boasting. "

He sighed sadly: "I believe that you, like me, are saddened to see this scene, and feel the same when seeing the people suffering. Before the people have time to grow old, they die at the mouth of evil spirits. Finally, under the harsh government, young and ambitious people are useless In the land of martial arts, the court hall is full of people selling their children and girls, and they have nothing to do. The plague is rampant, and there is no cure for the disease. The Ming Dynasty has become rotten!"

The young master turned his face and looked at Chen Shi with intense eyes: "I think you, like me, want to change everything! You want to get rid of corruption, you want to suppress the demons, and you want to overthrow everything that causes suffering in the world! You want to recreate the glory of the True King era! That’s what I want too!”

He said excitedly: "They told me not to come to see you. They said you were a stubborn person, an evil person, and a heinous gangster. But I know you are not! You and I are the same kind of people!"

"You have great intentions, but you have been misunderstood. You have a desire to change the world but have nowhere to use it. You have ambitions and skills but no place to use them! Chen Jieyuan, you and I are the same kind of people. You and I are not enemies!"

The young master said loudly: "You and I should join forces, we should influence the current situation, we should bring order to chaos, we should win from chaos, we should change the world, and work together to build an ideal era of true kings!"

He stretched out his hand to Chen Shi and said sincerely: "Chen Jieyuan, not many people in this world understand you. You and I are not strangers. Come over here and help me!"

Fang Tan and Wei Xize were moved by his words and couldn't help but have red eyes. The young master's heartfelt words also aroused their resonance.

Chen Shi looked ahead and said lightly: "Are you done?" The sincere expression on the young master's face froze.

Chen Shi ignored his hand and continued to walk forward, saying: "When you are done, go back and wash your neck, and wait for the big exam. I will kill you like a chicken."

The young master's face sank, stopped, and watched him walk further and further away.

The next morning, Chen Shi woke up early. Chen Tang did not go to court. He took him to wash, burn incense, and burn incense for the spirit of his grandfather Chen Yindu. He also asked Chen Shi to pay homage to his mother and said: "You cannot carry talismans, talismans, and magic weapons in the examination. If you have any, take them off, otherwise it will be embarrassing if they are searched, and it is easy to lose them."

Chen Shi took out the Youquan Youlong Sword and some treasures on his body and handed them to him.

"You have to change your clothes into ordinary clothes, and you can't wear clothes with talismans, and you can't draw talismans on your body." Chen Tang thought for a while and said, "Firearms are not allowed either."

Chen Shi muttered and took out some caltrops from the small temple.

Chen Tang looked at these caltrops that were taller than him, and his eyes twitched. He said, "Cannons are not allowed either, and there are also dragon head rockets, which cannot be taken over."

Chen Shi was dejected and took out two large general cannons and a dozen rockets.

Chen Tang looked at these two-meter-long behemoths and couldn't help but have a headache. Is the small temple behind this child's head so big? Why is there so many things stuffed in it? "If there is a general cannon, there must be a bullet. Take out the bullet."

Chen Shi took out another bullet and said, "There is nothing this time."

Chen Tang was a little unconvinced. He entered his small temple, searched around, and invited Fu Shen Tianji and Shiji Niangniang out. He said, "You plant these spiritual medicines in the small world. You can't take these things with you. Don't worry, you put these things in the small world, I will help you keep them, they won't be lost."

After Chen Shi finished dealing with it, Chen Tang said, "You can't take the dog either." Hei Guo barked a few times to protest, but Chen Tang firmly refused.

He checked several times again to confirm that Chen Shi didn't bring any smuggled things, and then he personally sent Chen Shi to the Ministry of Rites. This joint examination was hosted by the Ministry of Rites. The civil examination was held in the Ministry of Rites, and the martial examination was held in the Shenjiying venue.

The Ministry of Rites had already begun to vacate many yamen mansions a few days ago, so that candidates from all over the country could have a place to take the joint examination. The civil examination was divided into three sessions, the first session was about righteousness, the second session was about discussion, and the third session was about questions. The martial arts test is divided into three sessions, the first session tests the art, the second session tests the art, and the third session tests the fighting.

The morning tests the literature, the afternoon tests the martial arts, and the test lasts for three days. The results will be announced one month later.

Then comes the palace examination.

When Chen Shi arrived at the Ministry of Rites, he saw that it was full of masters from the Ministry of Rites and the Shenjiying. The soldiers of the Shenjiying wore swords on their waists, carried bird bands on their backs, hung medicine pots, filled their cloth bags with lead bullets, and hung iron caltrops behind their buttocks.

In the sky, there stood a dozen or so tall yellow-turbaned warriors, leaning down and looking at the candidates who entered the examination room one by one. The officials of the Ministry of Rites offered sacrifices to the Yuanshen and inspected the body of each candidate to check if there were any prohibited items.

In addition, there were huge stone statues of mythical beasts in each examination room. There were two kinds of mythical beasts, one of which was like a dragon with four legs, and its body was shorter than that of a dragon, with a festive look and a smile. The other kind looks like a tiger with dragon horns and scales, with a mane on its back, a majestic look, and a suspicious look.

When Chen Shi arrived, several clerks from the Ministry of Rites were offering incense to the stone statue and offering sacrifices such as cattle and sheep.

Suddenly, the stone statue began to move with a clang, turning from stone into flesh and blood, jumping down from the altar, and began to examine each candidate. "That's Bi'an and Fuzhi. Any cheater, even if they invite ghosts and gods, can't escape their eyes and ears."

Chen Tang said, "Go in, take the exam well, don't have too much pressure."

Chen Shi said yes, and stepped forward to report his name. An examiner heard his name and led him into the examination room.

Chen Shi sat on the futon and saw that the examination room he was in was a large hall. In addition to him, there were more than a dozen tables and futons, most of which were empty. Only two tables had people in front of them, one was a young man, and the other was a strange young man.

There were only three of them in the entire examination room. "My name is Zhang You, nice to meet Chen Jieyuan."

The strange young man sat on the mat, bowed slightly to Chen Shi, and said with a smile, "I don't live in Qixia Temple, I'm staying at my uncle's house." "No whispering!" an examiner shouted.

Then, the two mythical beasts Bi'an and Fuzhi walked in, walked around majestically, and looked at the three people.

With the sound of a bell, an examiner came to the front of the three people, with a dignified face and a loud voice: "The first question of today's exam is divided into the meaning of the Four Books, the meaning of the Book of Changes, the meaning of the Book of Poetry, and the meaning of the Spring and Autumn Annals. The Four Books have six questions, three questions each for the Book of Changes, the Book of Poetry, and the Spring and Autumn Annals. Each candidate should choose a question and explain the meaning. The time limit is one hour." Then, some clerks came from the opposite side, pushing signs into the hall. One of the signs read: "The Four Books: One, follow the time of Xia, ride the carriage of Yin, wear the crown of Zhou, and dance Shao when it is music. Two, love your relatives and be kind to the people, be kind to the people and love things. Three..." Chen Shi checked them one by one. A clerk handed out pens, ink, paper and inkstone. The paper was Xuan paper, the ink had been ground, and the pens were ready. The topic Chen Shi chose was, thunder in the sky, Da Zhuang. A gentleman does not act without propriety. "This topic has been taught by Zhu Xiucai!" He was quite excited. He immediately picked up the pen to write down his name, hometown and topic, and was about to start writing.

At this time, a clerk came and took the rice paper from him, carefully studied his handwriting, and carefully thought about his topic. The other two clerks also came and took the paper from Zhang You and Gongzi, and studied the handwriting and topic beside them.

After a while, the three clerks actually sat down, wielding their pens like the wind, and wrote the interpretations of their topics on the paper! Chen Shi was stunned and hurriedly said to Bi'an and Fuzhi: "Cheating! We cheated!"

The two beasts turned a deaf ear and turned a blind eye to this scene.