Xue Jin was lost in thought for a long time. In the end, he let out a soft sigh.
According to the instructions, he had to tell Lin Xun about this matter and was not allowed to help.
Xue Jin had a strong feeling that there was no way Lin Xun was going to back down once everything was revealed!
……
Three days swiftly passed.
Lin Xun remained unaware that a dark night six-winged falcon had landed in his little courtyard three nights ago.
Neither did he know that news of his identity had already caused a fierce hidden current to flow in the far away Forbidden City.
His thoughts were fully focused on the provincial exam and his body was now fully recovered after three days of recuperation.
Lin Xun was quite happy to discover that after the grueling battle of the third round, his mastery of the Nine Heavenshaking Destruction Art had reached the Inkling level and had begun to advance toward the Elemental level.
The Elemental level consisted of discovering the subtleties of a technique. Only after gaining comprehension of a technique’s essence and secrets would a cultivator become capable of bringing out the technique’s full power.It was early in the morning. After washing up, Lin Xun walked out of the room into the courtyard.
Today was the final round of the provincial exam. Whether or not he could successfully obtain the provincial exam certificate would depend on today’s battle!
……
Haze Academy.
A sea of heads bobbed, creating a scene of unprecedented grandness.
The seats were already filled with countless figures that had their heads raised in anticipation.
After the first three rounds of the exam, only the remaining two hundred cultivators were allowed to participate in the final round.
After experiencing several rounds of screening, these two hundred cultivators would face their final challenge today. From among them, only a hundred would emerge as the victors of this provincial exam!
“The final round of the exam is finally here. I wonder who will be able to distinguish themselves and become the ultimate winner.”
“Who else can it be? It has to be Lin Xun!”
“That might not be certain. Although Lin Xun’s performance in the third round was extremely dazzling, there are still several top experts who can go toe to toe with him like Xue Shaolin, Yu Wengjin, Yun Zitong, and others.”
“What are you smoking? Even Le Zhiyou lost to Lin Xun, how can Xue Shaolin possibly be his match?”
“Everyone should know that the final exam score will be combined with the results of the first three rounds and evaluated together to decide the grading and the first hundred participants. From Lin Xun’s previous performance, he should be able to take first place if he does okay in the final round!”
“Hehe, that might not be so. The evaluation will be done by Governor Liu Wudiao and the other bigwigs. Who knows what decisions they will ultimately make?”
Various discussions flooded the arena like the tide, swirling endlessly in the air.
Lin Xun and the other 199 cultivators were already waiting in the exam area. Some were resting with their eyes closed, some were softly conversing, and some were silently lost in their own thoughts.
The final round was the crux of passing the provincial exam. If they lost here, it would not matter how well they did in the previous three rounds.
Due to these circumstances, the cultivators that had managed to come all the way here were determined to win in the final round. No one would willingly be eliminated at this critical last juncture as it would be a very terrible blow to any of them.
Lin Xun was standing alone to the side, also somewhat lost in thought.
Before he left in the morning, he had sensed that Xue Jin seemed to have wanted to say something but had ultimately opted not to.
This was rather unusual.
“Old Jin has never been one to be indecisive…”
Lin Xun pondered over the morning’s events.
However, he was soon roused from his thoughts by the sound of a bell that signified the start of the final round.
Like the previous three rounds, they would draw lots to select their opponents. The rules were simple: defeat the opponent to obtain victory.
Since only two hundred participants remained, it would be a straightforward one-on-one. The losers would be eliminated and the victors would pass the provincial exam.
Next, the chief examiner Liu Wudiao and the other bigwigs would evaluate the overall performances of the one hundred who won and decide the final rankings.
The opponent Lin Xun drew was a young man called Wang Kang. He came from a city in the southwest province called Yunjing City and he had not stood out much in the previous rounds. The fact that he had advanced to the final round was proof of his strength.
In fact, almost all of the two hundred finalists were top experts among the younger generation. None of them could be called ordinary.
However, there were rankings even amongst this elite group. Compared to a monster like Lin Xun, Wang Kang did appear rather ordinary.
When he found out his opponent was Lin Xun, Wang Kang shrieked and dropped the lot he had drawn. He looked like he had suffered a devastating blow and was utterly crushed and disappointed.
No one laughed. Instead, many of the participants looked at Wang Kang with pity. It was a huge misfortune to draw Lin Xun as an opponent.
Some also secretly rejoiced and sighed deeply in relief, elated that their opponent was not Lin Xun.
Xue Shaolin, Yu Wenjing, and Yun Zitong, who many people viewed as the favorites for the provincial exam, also revealed relieved expressions after ascertaining that they had not been matched up with Lin Xun.
Although these reactions were extremely subtle, it was evidence of how terrifying Lin Xun was in the hearts of these cultivators.
Lin Xun could not help but feel speechless when he observed this. Was he really that scary?
Lin Xun finally had a taste of what it was like to be a crane standing among chickens and the loneliness at the top. Of course, he knew that this only proved that his strength had been acknowledged in the southwest province.
In the empire’s other provinces, there were definitely existences that were equal to or even more outstanding than himself.
At the end of the day, the provincial exam was merely a single exam and most of the competitors were people from the same generation. Hence, being the top dog here was nothing to be proud of.
At the very least, Lin Xun’s cultivation was still at the Human Dipper stage and he still had a long way to go.
The final round of the exam had begun. The air was charged with excitement like a bomb that was about to go off.
For Lin Xun, however, it felt rather boring.
His opponent, Wang Kang, was a formidable character. Despite losing his composure earlier, Wang Kang displayed the traits of a top expert the moment the battle began. He was calm, collected, and focused.
Unfortunately, his opponent was Lin Xun. After a brief struggle, Wang Kang was subdued.
“I knew that Lin Xun would not disappoint!”
“A Human Dipper stage cultivator conquering all four rounds of the exams. You can hardly find anyone who can match him even in the past exams.”
“What a monster! I didn’t use to believe that there are true geniuses in this world. However, I am now a firm believer after seeing Lin Xun.”
“The national exam will begin in three months. I look forward to seeing Lin Xun represent our southwest province and vie with the other proud geniuses!”
Countless cheers erupted in the venue.
On the tall white jade stage, Governor Liu Wudiao and the others looked at each other and displayed ‘as expected’ expressions.
After the first three rounds, they had already concluded that there was no longer anyone who could stop Lin Xun from passing the provincial exam!
Lin Xun’s victory undoubtedly proved that they were right.
However, when they searched the arena again, they were stunned to find that Lin Xun’s figure was missing.
He had evidently left early again.
“This kid treats the provincial exam too lightly. He leaves as he pleases as if he doesn’t care about the results.”
Wei Lingzhen shook his head.
“Hehe, isn’t that normal? I was worried about what to do if he did another publicity stunt for Golden Jade Hall after winning.”
Du Dongtu laughed heartily. “However, he is quite an eccentric person and is different from the other cultivators. It’s rare to see someone like him.”
Governer Liu Wudiao coldly snorted. “Hmph, it will be naive of him to think that his overall results will easily clinch him first place in this provincial exam.”
Wei Lingzhen and Du Dongtu smiled. “Brother Liu, given his temperament, I feel that being first isn’t important to him at all.”
Liu Wudiao was stunned. After some thought, he could not help but admit that it was true. Lin Xun was different from the others. Although calling him a rebel would be too extreme, he was definitely an oddball.
Wei Lingzhen muttered, “I’m curious to know if he will participate in the national exam three months from now.”
“I don’t think he will miss it. However, whether he’ll reign supreme there is definitely uncertain. After all, only top-tier super talents can participate in the national exam and some of them even possess Spirit Sea stage cultivation!”
Du Dongtu said, “Although Lin Xun’s battle power can contend with the Heaven Dipper stage, if he encounters a real expert, his cultivation level will become his biggest weakness.”
Governor Liu Wudiao instructed, “It’s still too early to say such things. When the final round is over, please join me in evaluating the participants who passed.”
The other bigwigs nodded.
However, all of them already held a clear picture of Lin Xun’s final evaluation in their hearts.
Lin Xun hurriedly left Haze Academy and rushed straight home.
Xue Jin was leaving today and Lin Xun worried that he would disappear without saying a word. Hence, Lin Xun immediately rushed back the moment the exam ended.
Fortunately, Xue Jin was still around when Lin Xun returned. He secretly breathed a sigh of relief and grinned. “Old Jin, we’ve yet to have a satisfying drinking session. Shall we drink till we drop today?”
In the past, Xue Jin would have agreed without hesitation to the proposal of drinking.
However, he shook his head and said, “Kid, since the provincial exam is over, there is something I have to tell you.”
He wore a complicated expression that was very different from usual.
Lin Xun’s heart could not help but sink as a sense of foreboding rose within him.