Sword Roaring in the Sky

Chapter 172: Number One Scholar and First Place
Although Sun Yanwan was confident in his ability to pass the examination, those who could participate in the Dalang Imperial Examination and fight to the last level must be animals. His ability to win the first place must have been largely due to the contribution of Monk Kongchan!
However, he would not even mention this matter to Lu Shuangfeng. The two of them walked out of the crowd leisurely, had a brief discussion, and then went to buy eight-colored gifts and go to visit Monk Kongchan.

Monk Kongchan did not stay in any inn when he was in Luojing. Instead, he lived in Tiange Temple, which was the royal family temple. All the celebrations in the palace were held here. Ordinary monks could not live here unless they were of Kongchan's status.

The two men arrived at Tiangeji Temple, handed in their business cards, and soon got the opportunity to pay a visit to Monk Kongchan.

Monk Kongchan looked good. When he saw the two of them, he said calmly, "You two monkeys shouldn't go out and wander around as you please these days. The world of Dalang is about to change. Who knows who will be overthrown and who will rise to prominence."

Sun Yanwan asked, "But what about Yang Wuji challenging the Great Lang Ancestor?"

Monk Kongchan chuckled and said, "That's right, but there's more."

"Alanduo of Longzang Temple secretly ascended to Grandmaster status. He first initiated a battle for the throne, then slipped into Luojing. Taking advantage of the two supreme warriors' duel, each injured, he daringly infiltrated the imperial palace and severely injured our ancestor."

"Hehe, even though everyone in the palace says that the old ancestor is safe and sound, I think that old thing is probably dead."

"Alandra was really cruel!"

"Even if Dalang and Beiyan don't go to war, I'm afraid this battle for the throne will have to be of a different scale."

"Originally, Dalang would only support itself, but now there's been some talk. We hope all the major sects will send out people to gather the forces of all the sects in Dalang."

Sun Yanwan breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It will definitely not happen to me. I'm only a fourth-grade realm."

Monk Kongchan smiled, then changed the subject and said, "There's another thing. Alanta attacked our ancestor, and the palace was furious. They asked me to capture Mahanaye, and he's now imprisoned in Tiange Temple."

Sun Yanwan always felt that Monk Kongchan was hinting at something, but he couldn't figure it out for a moment, so he took out his master's letter and handed it to him.

Kong Chan read Zhang Yuanqiao's letter, chuckled, and said, "Old Zhang is quite lively. He actually exchanged a few moves with Yang Wuji."

"However, even if he is injured, he is still injured. He said that he is injured and will not recover for two or three years. He plans to return to Songyang Mountain to recuperate."

"Well, is there something I can't tell you directly? Why do you have to ask me to tell you?"

"No, no, absolutely no."

Monk Kongchan's expression changed slightly, and he muttered to himself, "Yang Wuji can let Zhang Yuanqiao return to Songyang Mountain to recuperate. Although the ancestor was seriously injured, his injuries were not serious. Alanta has just been promoted to Grandmaster, and his martial arts skills are definitely not superior to Zhang Yuanqiao and me. Even if we attack by surprise, we will not be able to escape unscathed."

Monk Kongchan chuckled and said, "I want Senior Brother Daku to help me, or I can take action and give him a beating."

Sun Yanwan was startled and thought to herself, "Why has the situation suddenly become so complicated?"

"Isn't Alanta a Grandmaster of an external family? How did he suddenly become a Grandmaster and even attack the ancestor of the Dalang royal family?"

"How could Master fight with Yang Wuji?"

"Who is Mahanaye?"

Kong Chan might not have all the answers to these questions, let alone Sun Yanwan. When he wanted to ask more details, Kong Chan waved his hand and said, "Let's not talk about these things for now." He glanced at Lu Shuangfeng and said, "You finally know how to work hard and have actually advanced to the Xiantian realm."

"Stay at Tiange Temple for the next few days. I will teach you for a few days to consolidate your cultivation."

Kong Chan then said to Sun Yanwan, "You need to prepare for the palace examination in a few days. Don't be distracted by other things. You should also stay at Tiange Temple."

Although Lu Shuangfeng was a playboy, he knew that the guidance of the Grand Master was an opportunity that could not be missed. He could only receive guidance from his master seven or eight times a year in Shaochan Temple. After all, Master Daku had too many disciples and it was impossible for him to teach them all personally. He was immediately overjoyed.

Sun Yanwan was also very happy. He had originally thought that after the duel between the two top martial artists, Luo Jing would be safe. He had never imagined that someone would be so audacious as to assassinate the ancestor, and that Longzang Temple had actually produced a great master. He decided to write a letter to his master and tell him this "big secret".

Sun Yanwan did not return to his residence. He only asked the young monk of Tiange Temple to notify the servants at home to send some of his personal clothes. As for the black rabbit and the rhubarb, it was inconvenient to raise them in the temple, so they remained in his residence.

When Monk Kongchan was teaching Lu Shuangfeng martial arts, he did not avoid Sun Yanwan, because he would not teach her any specific martial arts, but only some martial arts principles so that outsiders could also understand.

A few days passed, and when the palace examination came, Sun Yanwan went to the palace alone.

When he came to take part in the palace examination, he naturally could not bring two swords with him. He only brought things needed for the examination.

The palace examination consists of only one item, sometimes it is a policy essay, sometimes it is a national essay, which is slightly different from the imperial examinations on Earth. The former is about national economy and people's livelihood, while the latter is about foreign policy and dangerous battles.

When the topic came down, Sun Yanwan took a look at it and saw that it was a discussion on why the previous dynasty fell. He immediately changed a few key words in the "Six Kingdoms Theory", removed the words "Six Kingdoms", changed Qin to "Northern Yan", wrote it out from memory, and submitted it.

This is much easier than writing it himself.

After the exam, the candidates were taken aside. Dalang was different from the ancient imperial court on Earth. The results of the palace examination were announced on the same day, and the emperor himself called out the names.

Sun Yanwan had been meditating for six or seven hours, and was so hungry that he almost wanted to grab a young eunuch and eat him raw, when he got the news.

All the candidates were brought into the Wenkui Hall. There were dozens of armored soldiers on each side, and more than ten great scholars were giving advice to the emperor. Sun Yanwan took a sneak peek and felt that this Dalang Emperor did not look like Zhang Tielin or Zhang Guoli, but rather a bit like Bao Guoan, with a murderous aura.

Well, if the ancestor was seriously injured or even killed by Alanta, it is normal for the emperor to be murderous.

Sun Yanwan was just lost in thought when he heard the emperor slowly speak, saying, "Sun Yanwan's writing is elegant, profound, and rigorous. It deserves first place this time!"

As soon as these words came out, countless eyes fell on Sun Yanwan. He hurriedly stood up and went through the process according to the etiquette he had been trained in beforehand. He was very happy and thought to himself, "I copied books so many times just to please the young lady. Finally, I have done something serious."

He thanked the emperor for his grace and returned to his seat. As he listened to the emperor calling out someone else's name, he stopped caring and thought to himself, "Now that I've won the top spot, should I go to Songyang Mountain to tell my master the good news? Or should I keep a low profile and return to Taiyi Temple first?"

"Master is going to Songyang Mountain to recuperate this time. I don't know when he will be back."

"Why didn't Master mention his injury when I left? He also didn't mention returning to Songyang Mountain?"

(End of this chapter)