The Dao Sovereign of Shennong

The Great Zhou's examination system for officials culminated in the temple exam.

On the morning of February 3rd, at the hour of the rabbit (between 5 and 7 a.m.), Zhao Xing left his home and made his way to the Shennong Division.

By the third quarter of the hour, all fifteen participants had arrived, including Zong Shichang, Xiao Ze, Wen Nanxing, and Ding Shan.

Chen Shijie and the other assistant officers of the Shennong Division had been waiting for some time.

Once everyone was assembled, Chen Shijie spoke, "Whether you can officially become an officer depends on today."

"You all have a chance to pass, so don't be nervous. Stay calm and perform as you normally would."

"Myself and the other officials wish you all success."

"Thank you, my lord," the officials-in-training all said, cupping their hands in gratitude.

After the pleasantries, Chen Shijie continued:

"The changing rooms are in the back. There is a set of examination clothes prepared for each of you."

"Remove all personal attire and do not bring any external items with you."

"You have three-quarters of an hour left, so head inside and change."

The candidates were familiar with the rules of the temple exam, and without delay, they all went inside to change into the provided clothing.

Zhao Xing also went in and changed into a long robe.

He did not bring anything with him, not even the sixth-tier soul armor, which he had already stored in the Grand Dream Academy, leaving it under the care of the mechanical beast Xiezhi.

Though the Grand Dream Academy didn't usually allow such a function, only permitting objects to be taken out but not stored in, the soul armor was an exception, allowing for both retrieval and storage.

Other items, like the Calamity Repelling Almanac and the Thousand-Mile Command Token, which he had borrowed, had been returned to the Shennong Division's internal repository after the Xuantian Sect incident.

As for the Wind Crystal Earrings, they were left at home, meaning Zhao Xing was currently unburdened by any external items.

After changing, he joined the other candidates and waited.

There was no idle chatter—everyone was quietly awaiting the start.

At the sixth quarter of the rabbit hour, a cloud-riding boat came from the south and descended upon Gucheng's Shennong Division.

Four officials disembarked from the boat.

Two were ceremonial officers from the temple, each holding a statue of the county's prince.

The other two were seventh-rank examiners.

After briefly reviewing the rules, they led the fifteen Shennong candidates into Gucheng's temple at the hour of the dragon (around 7 a.m.).

Following the ceremonial officers' lead, the candidates first made offerings at the various temple halls, such as the Hall of the Lord of East Lake, the Hall of the Lord of Cao Xi, and the Hall of the Saints.

This process was to express gratitude to the yin deities for transmitting their teachings.

Zhao Xing primarily honored Cao Xi and Zheng Lun, as most of his techniques were passed down from these two yin deities.

After the offering ceremony, the fifteen candidates gathered at the central square of the temple, known as Tianxin Square.

By the third quarter of the dragon hour, the two ceremonial officers from the county placed the statues of the county prince at the four corners of the square.

"Buzz~"

Golden light illuminated the square, and suddenly, a new palace appeared at its center.

The fifteen candidates, who had been standing in the square, found themselves transported to this new palace in the blink of an eye.

This was the Tianxin Hall, dedicated to the Great Zhou's founding emperor. It was only activated during the temple exam or on major ceremonial occasions such as the emperor's offerings.

"Bow!"

The ceremonial officers led the candidates in offering incense and bowing before the statue of the founding emperor, expressing their gratitude for establishing the temple system, spreading the teachings of countless techniques, and instituting the examination system that allowed lower-ranking officials a path to advancement.

By the fourth quarter of the dragon hour, the ceremonial officers cast slips of yellow paper, representing the candidates' names, into the bronze incense burner before the emperor's altar.

"Buzz~"

The ground beneath them opened, and fifteen desks and chairs rose from below.

"Candidates, find your seats."

Zhao Xing located the desk marked with his name and sat down.

"Clatter~"

The moment he sat, brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones appeared on his desk.

Looking up, he noticed the other candidates and the officials gradually fading from view.

The theoretical portion of the temple exam had officially begun.

This section of the exam would last a total of thirty-six hours.

Leaving the seating area would count as submitting the exam early.

When the time ran out, no more answers could be written.

"It's finally here."

Zhao Xing exhaled softly, then picked up the exam paper to review it from start to finish.

The exam consisted of forty sheets of paper.

Thirty sheets contained questions, while ten were left blank for additional answers.

As with the Bailu exam previously, the questions followed the official guidelines laid out by the imperial court, similar to those Chen Shijie had designed before.

The first ten sheets were foundational questions, which required rote memorization. Compared to the Bailu exam, there were a third fewer of these basic questions.

Since the temple exam was tied to formal appointments, the number of "giveaway" questions was reduced.

Zhao Xing skimmed through these first questions and began answering.

"In what year, month, and dynasty was 'The Hundred Solutions to Heavenly Times' compiled, and by whom? Which position does this individual hold in the current Hall of the Saints?"

Zhao Xing quickly wrote down the answer: "Compiled in the Yuan Era of the Qian Dynasty, in July of the 149th year, by Grand Shennong Chen Yi, ranked 27th in the current Hall of the Saints."

"On the day of Great Heat, rotten grass turns into fireflies. After five days, great rains begin to fall. What happens five days later?"

Answer: "Five days later, the earth becomes moist, and the humid heat intensifies."

"Rotten grass does not turn into fireflies, and the grains fail to ripen. What follows?"

Answer: "The earth does not moisten, the humid heat fails, and the crops do not grow. If great rains do not fall on time, the country receives no divine grace."

Zhao Xing answered these foundational questions smoothly and soon finished this section of "giveaway" questions.

Then came the scenario-based, intermediate-level questions that would begin filtering the candidates.

"In the land of Nanzheng, the earth is difficult to excavate, and fire seems to strengthen the soil instead of softening it. The force of metal drains the essence of the earth, making the dry soil brittle and unusable. How should this situation be resolved?"

Seeing this question, Zhao Xing furrowed his brow slightly.

He hadn't expected such a challenging question to appear on the eleventh sheet, right at the beginning of the scenario-based questions.

"This question is about the use of soil, but why would metal, used to drain the earth's essence, lead to such brittle, dry soil?"

The extraction of earth has its principles, so this question should be answered based on the principles of the 'Monthly Extraction of Earth', with consideration for the cycles of spring, summer, autumn, and winter.

If the fire strengthens the soil instead of softening it, then the soil in question must be 'summer soil.'

The mention of the power of metal draining the essence of the soil points to the use of metal to release the earth's energy, as described in the 'Monthly Extraction of Earth.' So why would the earth veins cause the soil to become brittle and unusable?

Zhao Xing's eyes scanned the question, pausing at the mention of 'Nanzheng.' After two seconds, the realization hit him.

He then picked up his brush and wrote his answer: "The land of Nanzheng is the ancestral land of our dynasty, and it only experiences summer and autumn."

"Without the balancing forces of spring and winter, the heat of summer becomes excessive. To extract summer soil, one must introduce water from the source, using weak but steady earth veins to moisten the soil and control the fire. Supplementing with metal energy from the earth veins to release the essence can achieve harmony."

After completing the answer, Zhao Xing relaxed his brow.

The monthly extraction of earth comes from 'The Benefits of the Five Elements of the Earth Veins.'

But this question had another layer of difficulty, testing the candidate's knowledge of geography.

What kind of place is Nanzheng? It's the ancestral home of the dynasty's founder!

If you don't even know that such a famous location only has summer and autumn seasons, how could you expect to become an official?

You might as well go home and feed pigs!

Candidates unfamiliar with the situation in Nanzheng would likely struggle with this question.

But for those who knew the significance of the region, the answer was straightforward. As long as they remembered the appropriate methods for handling the five elements of the earth veins, they could write a good answer.

Zhao Xing continued to answer the subsequent scenario-based questions carefully and methodically, managing to answer most of them with relative ease.

However, when he reached the final major question, he encountered a challenge that briefly disrupted his flow.

"In the Northern Sea, there is an island. On the day of Lìdōng (Beginning of Winter), the waters begin to freeze. Five days later, the sea is frozen. Five more days pass, and a giant whale breaks through the ice and transforms into a black sparrow. A blue bird dives into the water and transforms into a purple snake. After five more days, fire erupts from the seabed."

"The island has millions of inhabitants, but only the Shennong and Tiangong divisions. If you were the head of the Shennong Division, how would you resolve this natural disaster?"

Zhao Xing stared at the question, momentarily taken aback, wondering if he had read it incorrectly.

As the final scenario-based question, it was undoubtedly difficult.

But Zhao Xing wasn't shocked by its difficulty.

He was stunned because he had seen this question before.

And he remembered it vividly.

Years ago, when he had played this scenario in a game, he had gotten this question wrong, missing his chance to switch classes as a result.

"Looks like the last island disaster question is going to be an easy one," Zhao Xing smiled.

This was a 'phenological' question, and moreover, it was based on a rare hundred-year phenological event.

The transformation of the giant whale into a black sparrow, the blue bird turning into a purple snake, and the eruption of fire from the seabed—these were all rare natural phenomena that only occurred once every century.

The question posed was how, as the head of the Shennong Division, one would respond to such a disaster.

There were three main challenges within the question:

First, recognizing that it was a centennial phenological event and understanding the severity of the disaster.

Second, calculating the strength of the forces at your disposal based on the information provided.

Third, devising an appropriate strategy to deal with the disaster.

The first challenge, identifying a hundred-year phenological event, wasn't too difficult for well-read candidates. The black sparrow and the purple snake were both sixth-grade beasts. Moreover, such events only involved the transformation of a single specimen of each species, meaning there was only one black sparrow and one purple snake involved.

The second challenge was determining the strength of the forces available based on the information in the question.

With 'millions of island inhabitants' and both the Shennong Division and Tiangong Division present, their internal treasuries must contain at least fifth-grade treasures.

This tested the candidate's knowledge of the imperial system.

Other departments weren't mentioned, so candidates needed to focus their answers on the Shennong and Tiangong divisions.

Otherwise, one could easily joke about summoning 'an army of a hundred thousand soldiers to slaughter the black sparrow and purple snake for a barbecue.'

The second challenge also contained a trap, hidden in the phrase 'There is an island in the Northern Sea.'

"The Northern Sea is a critical frontier. With millions of islanders, the treasuries of the Shennong Division and Tiangong Division would be elevated by a grade, giving access to sixth-grade treasures. This would include large-scale divine weapons like Dragonbone Tower Ships and Xuan Yuan Ballistae, as well as personal divine gear like Wind Thunder Cloaks, Hundred Blossom Hats, and Windbane Beads."

"However, these treasures cannot be used recklessly. They must be employed strategically."

"Which brings us to the third challenge—proposing a practical solution to the disaster."

Instead of rushing, Zhao Xing took a moment to organize his thoughts.

Once he was confident in his approach, he began to write.

"The giant whale breaking through the ice and transforming into the black sparrow, the blue bird diving into the water and transforming into the purple snake—these are all part of the Northern Sea's centennial phenomenon."

"Both the black sparrow and the blue bird are sixth-grade beasts."

"The Northern Sea is a crucial stronghold with millions of islanders, so its treasury must contain sixth-grade treasures."

"To mitigate this disaster, the Tiangong Division across the island should activate the large-scale sixth-grade divine weapon, 'Barrier of the Mo Shou Realm,' to ensure the safety of the people."

"Next, dispatch the Dragonbone Tower Ships to sea, accompanied by the Dragonhead Ships, releasing Floating Cloud Boats to rescue those living beyond the island."

"As head of the Shennong Division, I would don the sixth-grade Wind Thunder Cloak, known for its speed."

"The sixth-grade Hundred Blossom Hat would be used to augment my spells."

"Consult the books 'Later Earth' and 'Four Seas' to calm the earth veins and return the waters to their source."

"Employ the Seasonal Command, reversing the three seasonal transitions of Lìdōng, creating a cycle that returns the black sparrow to its whale form and the purple snake to its blue bird state..."

Since Zhao Xing already knew the answer, he wrote swiftly and smoothly, completing the question in one go.

To ensure full marks, he even provided multiple solutions, including post-disaster relief measures.

Of course, these were minor details, and even without backup solutions, his answer was sufficient. As for the relief efforts, merely mentioning them was enough, as this wasn't part of the Shennong Division's responsibilities.

The question primarily tested the candidates' knowledge of phenology, the Northern Sea, the imperial system, and treasures.

It was a comprehensive assessment of the candidates' qualifications to see if they were truly ready to take on the responsibilities of an official.

If a candidate could provide a reasonably good answer to problems typically encountered by sixth or seventh-grade officials, they were likely capable of handling the responsibilities of a ninth-grade official.

This was the examiner's logic.

Time passed slowly. After finishing the scenario-based questions, Zhao Xing found himself answering the rest of the exam even more smoothly.

He came across many familiar questions, too.

Before he knew it, there was only one sheet of paper left.

It contained just one question.

"Please pair the five elements, heavenly stems, and earthly branches with the four seasons, and explain the underlying philosophy."

"My teacher predicted this question!"

Zhao Xing smiled.

During the Bailu exam, the theory question had been prepared by Old Shennong.

The final major question back then was identical to the one before him now.

"Old Shennong is truly a great teacher. Gucheng's fifteen candidates today will all benefit from his wisdom."

He had answered this question before, and afterward, he had shared his standard answer with his peers for them to study.

This would give the candidates from Gucheng a distinct advantage in the final major question.

Feeling appreciative, Zhao Xing began writing his answer.

He didn't plan to make any changes—he would simply replicate the same standard answer he had given last time.

His previous answer had earned him high praise from Chen Shijie, making the stern examiner mimic a cat. It would undoubtedly suffice for the temple exam as well.

"The current mainstream theory is the 'Earth as the Ruler of Late Summer' approach. If I were to propose the 'Earth as the Ruler of All Seasons' theory, it would be too advanced, and might even backfire."

Having made up his mind, Zhao Xing started writing.

He wasn't concerned about his fellow candidates outperforming him because the earlier questions were already quite difficult. Besides, only those from Gucheng had seen his standard answer, and the temple exam was administered by the imperial court on a much larger scale.

Helping his colleagues gain an advantage didn't bother him.

"There is nothing more precious than earth. Among the five elements, earth commands all four seasons, ruling without contest. It does not share power with fire."

"Wood, fire, metal, and water each govern one season, while earth sits at the center, holding the reins and controlling all directions."

"The theory of earth ruling late summer states..."

After completing his answer, Zhao Xing reviewed all of his responses twice.

Satisfied that nothing was missed, he stood up and left his seat.

"Buzz~"

As he stood, he suddenly saw the other candidates and examiners again.

Outside, yin deities were patrolling, ensuring no one could cheat through external means.

"Candidate Zhao Xing, are you sure you've completed your exam?" an official asked.

"Yes, sir. I am sure," Zhao Xing replied with a respectful bow.

"Whoosh~"

The moment his words fell, his exam paper floated into the air and entered the incense burner in the Tianxin Hall.

The exam paper flickered in the golden flames but didn't burn. After a few moments of tumbling, it vanished from sight.

"You are the first to finish. You may choose to rest for half an hour, or proceed directly to the second half of the temple exam," the examiner said with an expressionless face.

"I choose to proceed directly to the practical examination."

As soon as Zhao Xing spoke, buzz~, the statue in the Tianxin Hall emitted waves of golden light.

Suddenly, the other candidates disappeared, and Zhao Xing found himself standing in the middle of a golden-yellow field under a dark sky.

Zhao Xing knew he had entered the internal examination space of the Tianxin Hall.

This space was created from fragments of a small cave-heaven world.

Even though it was just a fragment of a small world...

The space was still vast.

Zhao Xing activated his Night Vision Technique to look around, but he couldn't see the edges of the space.

"Buzz~"

As he surveyed the surroundings, a golden document floated down from the sky, landing in front of Zhao Xing and unfolding on its own.

"Candidate Zhao Xing, the examination space for this test is based on the size of a sub-county."

"The time allotted for this practical exam is twelve hours."

"You are required to observe the heavenly times, earthly benefits, and time cycles on your own."

"Based on the following requirements, you must complete the practical test."

Zhao Xing took the document and read the test conditions:

"Clouds must be formed at the hour of the dragon (7-9 a.m.), thunder must strike at the hour of the snake (9-11 a.m.), rain must begin at noon (11 a.m.-1 p.m.), and rainfall must end by the hour of the sheep (1-3 p.m.), resulting in a total of forty-eight drops of rain, covering the entire examination space."

Zhao Xing frowned slightly, realizing the challenge.

"The sky is dark. Without mastery of the Night Vision Technique, candidates wouldn't be able to see anything, making this task significantly harder—this is the first difficulty."

"Cloud Summoning, thunder summoning, rainmaking, and ensuring the rain ends within four hours—this tests a candidate's endurance and precision. That's the second difficulty."

"Covering an area the size of a sub-county means the candidate's mastery of the Four Heavenly Techniques must not be too low—that's the third difficulty."

"Releasing exactly forty-eight drops of rain, with precision down to the smallest measure, tests the candidate's control over their spells—that's the fourth difficulty."

"Without the almanac and under a dark sky, determining the exact time becomes extremely difficult. If the timing is off, significant points will be deducted—that's the fifth difficulty."

There were five challenges in total, and none of them were easy.

The practical portion of the temple exam was heavily weighted.

No matter how brilliant a candidate's theoretical answers were, a poor performance on the practical test would disqualify them from becoming an official.

Failing to meet the minimum standard meant they could never be trusted with the welfare of the people, as they might cause the very disasters they were meant to prevent.

The court couldn't possibly let such a person become an official—it would be a disaster for both the people and the empire.

"The civilian officials' test is already this difficult. I can't imagine how hard it must be for military officials," Zhao Xing thought, feeling a bit emotional. "But this won't be too hard for me."

With his Night Vision Technique maxed out, the dark sky posed no obstacle for Zhao Xing. He quickly leaped to a higher vantage point, scanning the surrounding environment. He found that the area consisted mostly of plains and fields, with no significant terrain features.

By observing the humidity in the air, the temperature, and the growth of the plants in the fields, Zhao Xing deduced that this test was set in early summer.

The moisture in the environment was relatively balanced.

For the candidates, this created neutral conditions for spellcasting.

At least the examiners hadn't added complications with the terrain or weather. If they had thrown in extreme conditions, like rough terrain or severe weather, it would have driven the candidates crazy.

Covering an area the size of a sub-county, maintaining spellcasting for four hours, and controlling the spells with precision—these were not difficult for Zhao Xing.

The only real challenge was accurately keeping track of time.

"Without the almanac, without a rising sun, and with the sky intentionally darkened, most time-keeping methods have been blocked, making it much harder for candidates to track the correct hour."

"Cloud Summoning, rainmaking, and thunder summoning must be performed exactly on the hour, and any slight mistake in timing will result in a loss of points."

"If I can't determine the exact time, I won't be able to begin. First, I need to figure out what time it is."

After thinking for a moment, Zhao Xing crouched down and felt the soil beneath his hands.