Shennong Dao Master
Chapter 161 - 101: The Temple Examination Concludes, the List is Announced! _2

Chapter 161: Chapter 101: The Temple Examination Concludes, the List is Announced! _2

"Didn’t ask you," Chen Shijie snapped.

"The twelve-hour grass is a derivative species." Xue Wenzhong furrowed his brow. "It’s a derivative species cultivated by Shangluo Academy. I only saw it once, twenty-six years ago."

Tang Wanchun, Gao Linong, and Pang Yuan remained silent.

They had only heard about it but had never seen it and didn’t understand it well.

"What does it mean?" Long Xiao, the outsider, was completely confused. "Is the question difficult?"

"It’s extremely difficult." Xue Wenzhong shook his head helplessly. "It’s easy for some hopeful officials to fail this stage."

He began to worry about Zhao Xing.

"What’s to worry about? If it’s difficult, it’s difficult for everyone, not just Zhao Xing." Long Xiao sat back down.

"General Long doesn’t understand," Xue Wenzhong said. "The practical exam determines everything. If one can’t even pass this stage, no matter how strong they were before, it’s useless."

"The question is so obscure that it could easily lead to..."

"I don’t understand what you’re saying." Long Xiao laughed. "But I think if even Zhao Xing can’t pass, there won’t be many officials who can. Wouldn’t that cause a rebellion?"

"If it’s difficult for everyone, then what’s there to be afraid of? You need to have faith in him."

"Makes sense," Xue Wenzhong nodded. He was too concerned to see clearly, unlike Long Xiao.

"Shangluo Academy is the gathering place of the Self Sect. I don’t know why they suddenly got involved in the official exams this year." Chen Shijie thought to himself. "Aren’t they asking for trouble?"

"It may not have been their idea. They might have been used."

"Currently, it’s still the Heavenly Time Sect and the Earth Advantage Sect that are dominant. The Self Sect wants to get involved and put themselves in a position to be criticized rather than being shut out."

"But being criticized is better than no one caring. I’ve heard Shangluo Academy hasn’t been full in recent years, and there are no successors."

Chen Shijie had many thoughts flash through his mind.

But soon, he shook them off. He was only concerned about one thing now.

Can Zhao Xing pass the exam?

Tang Wanchun looked at the exam question and couldn’t help but smile bitterly. "Rain count forty-eight? That little rain needs to fall for two hours."

"What’s the problem?" Long Xiao asked.

Tang Wanchun cupped his hands and said, "General, you may not know. With forty-eight points of rain, if an average temple examination official goes all out, they could achieve it in about fifteen minutes."

"But the problem is, they don’t want you to go all out. They want you to make it rain continuously for two hours."

"That requires extremely precise control over the rain bringing spell to make it rain slowly for two hours."

"You can’t stop halfway, it has to last long, and it has to be just right."

Long Xiao rested his chin on his hand. "It’s like if I could finish peeing in ten breaths, but the examiner wants me to drip it out slowly for an hour? Testing my control over urination..."

Tang Wanchun’s expression stiffened. "Ahem, General, your crude words contain logic."

Chen Shijie glared at him. "What kind of lousy analogy is that? My Minister of Agriculture’s rain skill, and you make it sound so vulgar?"

"Whether in military campaigns or local governance, the amount and duration of rain have different uses. It’s only been five years since we’ve coordinated, and you’ve forgotten all the training? Or did you not listen to me carefully back then?"

Long Xiao chuckled. "How could I forget? I remember everything you said! I’m just trying to lighten the mood. Of course, I know what rain is used for! You don’t have to give me extra training when we get back, really..."

....

Inside the small world fragment.

Zhao Xing supported the floating cloud, staring at the Noon Grass.

At this moment, thunder flickered within the clouds above, constantly.

The ’qi’ of the Si Hour Grass had risen to the seventh thousand and one hundred and ninety divisions.

Zhao Xing watched while silently counting down in his heart.

"Ten, nine, eight,... three, two, one!"

"Bring rain!"

With a burst of golden light from Zhao Xing reaching the clouds.

Drip-drip~

Raindrops began to fall.

At the same time, ’qi’ began to rise from the stem of the Noon Grass from the root.

"On the dot, perfectly timed rain," Zhao Xing sighed in relief.

Next, he had to wait for Noon to pass and stop the rain at Weishi.

"Rain has its rules. It has to last for two hours, but the rain count has to be controlled to forty-eight points."

Compared to the timing, this wasn’t too difficult.

Of course, this was just Zhao Xing’s opinion.

The rest of the officials probably found it very tedious.

But difficulty was expected.

Otherwise, wouldn’t everyone pass?

An hour later, the ’qi’ in the Noon Grass disappeared, seeping out from the leaves.

Then, the ’qi’ in the Weishi Grass began to rise.

Zhao Xing sat cross-legged on the ground, his mind undisturbed.

The rain count was calculated at the start, it just needed to be maintained at a constant value.

"For an average official, maintaining consistency all the time is challenging, manageable for short periods."

"Over time, it’s inevitable to encounter some problems."

"Smart officials wouldn’t use this method. They would ’adjust’ the spell effectiveness occasionally."

"Calculating the rainfall, making minor adjustments to the rain bringing spell, but I haven’t made any mistakes so far. After boosting my Life Soul, my spell control improved." Zhao Xing thought.

If he hadn’t seized the Blood Spirit Venerable’s soul power, he might have considered adjusting the spell to pass this stage.

But with the enhanced Life Soul, the unification and coordination of his Seven Spirits had also intensified, naturally improving his spell control.

Zhao Xing was now a relentless rain machine, unchanged from start to end.

The rain bringing spell’s effect from the start at noon was still the same, and by calculation, stopping the rain exactly at Weishi would result in a perfect forty-eight points.