1 Small Town

Qing Shan Town was an ordinary town situated halfway up the mountain. Usually, there were very few visitors, but it was abuzz with activities at the moment due to the mystic examination of the Qi Country.

"Next, Feng Hua County candidate, Xia Fan." The invigilator read the name on the name list.

Xia Fan walked forward and passed his wooden sword and bag.

Immediately, two assistants opened the bag and checked the contents carefully.

"Clothes, two sets, fulfills the requirement."

"Medicine bag, one bag, fulfills the requirement."

"Paper, one stack, fulfills the requirement."

"Money…" One of the people checking the money bag felt surprised at its weight. "Less than five taels."

Laughter could be heard behind Xia Fan. Although it was very soft, he heard nasty comments like "poor chap" and "bumpkin".

"As long as it doesn't surpass the limit, it's alright." The invigilator didn't show much of a reaction and acted as though he had experienced similar situations many times. "Put your handprint here and cross the bridge."

Xia Fan followed the instructions and crossed the small suspension bridge that connected the town to the outside.

Thus, he officially entered the "examination venue".

Meanwhile, the candidates who went in before him had already begun to run along the streets.

It seemed that they acted the same way as Xia Fan expected. When one arrived at a foreign land, the first thing to do was to familiarize oneself with the place so as to deal with the test.

After strolling around for an hour, he finally had a general understanding of the "examination venue".

The town was far smaller than he imagined. It would be more appropriate to describe it as a village instead of a town.

It was remotely located and was backed by the mountains, surrounded by a rift valley, and the only access to the outside world was the suspension bridge built from rope and wooden planks.

The surrounding vegetation was lush and green, and one could see tall trees and smell the fragrance of the wet soil while walking along the streets. In another era, this isolated settlement would have been a stunning attraction to many and a tourist attraction close to nature. However, at this moment, isolation meant poverty and underdevelopment.

Four crisscrossing muddy roads divided the town roughly into the shape of a hash symbol. There were less than 30 houses, and most of them were thatched-roof cottages. Some of them were abandoned for years and were becoming smaller as time passed.

Only the center of the settlement looked slightly more like a town. There were at least two-story brick houses along the road, an inn, and a teahouse.

That was also the most happening place in Qing Shan Town.

"Excuse me, brother." Suddenly, someone tapped on Xia Fan's shoulder and asked, "Are you also from Feng Hua County?"

Xia Fan turned and saw a slightly chubby man around the same age as him smiling and looking at him with expectation.

"Yes, you are…"

"Hi, we're from the same hometown." The other party seemed to heave a sigh of relief. "I'm Wei Wushuang. I was two or three places behind you in line earlier on, so I heard the question from the examiner."

"I see."

Wei Wushuang shook his hands when he saw Xia Fan raise his eyebrows. "I don't think there's anything wrong with bringing half a bag of money. After all, not everyone is wealthy, and only those wealthy people like to look down on others. To be honest, I hate them too.

"By the way, why don't we go in and talk over tea?" He looked at the teahouse and said, "My treat."

Was this considered a natural affiliation or did Wei Wushuang just have nothing better to do? Since Xia Fan had nothing much to do anyway, he agreed. He was a little curious about what Wei Wushuang was up to.

After sitting down at an empty table at the side of the second floor, Wei Wushuang ordered a pot of green tea, a plate of boiled peanuts, and a plate of pig's ear. He was obviously a frequent restaurant-goer.

Although it seemed quite ordinary, Xia Fan knew that it was by no means the norm of ordinary people's lives. In order to visit restaurants in that era, one had to be relatively wealthy.

At least, Xia Fan had never been to one.

He was experiencing life from another angle.

"Don't feel shy." Wei Wushuang gestured an invitation and said, "Let me know if you want to order anything else."

"This is enough." Xia Fan poured some tea for himself. "We have limited money, we should save up. Who knows how long the examination will last."

"You're right." Wei Wushuang's expression obviously changed when they talked about the examination. "I heard that although the passing rate of the mystic examination is not too low, there's a difference between upper and lower class. If you're considered lower class, it isn't much better than not being selected. After all, it'd be a tiring and risky job. However… Sigh, both of us come from ordinary families, how can we compare to those from wealthy backgrounds?"

Every time Xia Fan heard about the examination, an indescribable feeling would surge from the bottom of his heart. Although he had long accepted the reality, he still couldn't neglect the strange outcome from the collision of two sets of common senses of knowledge.

Indeed, in this world, the strange things which used to exist only in legends had become a common phenomenon. It did not only exist in some mountain, tomb, or remote island. Instead, it had affected different aspects of life. In order to deal with these strange events, each dynasty had set up a Privy Council to select relevant talents to protect the safety of the dynasty.

And the method of selection was none other than a public examination. Whoever was selected would be considered a mystic, and not only did they have the title, but they also would be treated the same way as other officials. Therefore, after a while, the mystic examination became the third major national examination after the major imperial examination and martial arts examination. Moreover, since the Privy Council wasn't among the six ministries but under the direct control of the Emperor, it had gained momentum above the martial arts examination in recent years.

Similar to the imperial examination, the mystic examination was held once every three years. However, the format was different from the stages conducted in spring and fall. Anyone who was interested could register before the summer test, and, after verification of their identity, they could proceed with the examination. Usually, the examination lasted for a few days, and the outcome would be decided after it ended.

According to what Xia Fan had heard initially, the acceptance rate was about fifty percent, much more lenient than the imperial examination. However, considering the responsibilities of a mystic, that was reasonable. After all, much fewer people joined the mystic examination as compared to the imperial examination. Moreover, it was held once every three years. If the requirements were made stricter, the Privy Council would definitely suffer from a lack of manpower, and that would affect the safety of the country.

However, for any examination, there would be a difference in grades. Those who barely passed would be assigned a less than ideal place. The regular officials assigned to poor regions and had to live a thrifty life, they might have a chance to turn their lives around for the better as they worked their way up the rankings. However, the Privy Council was different. Nobody could avoid having to deal with strange phenomenons and might be killed on duty.

With this difference, it was no wonder that Wei Wushuang was worried about his ranking.

"The mystic examination is done voluntarily. If you didn't sign up, you wouldn't be troubled over these," said Xia Fan unconcernedly. Clearly, Wei Wushuang wasn't the type that needed to take a gamble and always had spare money with him to go to restaurants during his free time. With his background, he definitely did not have to take the risk and could live a good life.

"Please don't laugh at me, I was forced by my father," Wei Wushuang said helplessly. "He said being a businessman won't bring me far. It's extremely different from a proper official! Moreover, he said that I would be disrespecting my ancestors if I didn't come. Of course, the main reason was the leather whip in his hand…"

Xia Fan couldn't help but smile. "Are you the oldest son in your family?"

"How did you know that?" Wei Wushuang took a sip of tea unhappily. "My father has three sons and two daughters, and I'm the second child."

Indeed, he seemed to be his father's biological son.

However, he wasn't much better — During the period he was in Feng Hua County, not only did his own master lose his money, because of his desire to recover his losses quickly, he lost another huge sum of money while gambling and nearly lost his life. Now, his master was still being held by the casino and waiting for him to return with the ransom after he became a mystic. It was extremely humiliating.

If not for the fact that his cheap master adopted him when he was an orphan and took care of him for more than ten years, Xia Fan really wanted to leave him behind and flee.

He shook his head to temporarily put aside these bad memories and went straight to the point. "What exactly do you want to talk about from this session?"

"Eh? No, nothing much…" Wei Wushuang was stunned. Then, he scratched his head and said, "I thought that since you are from the Feng Hua County, we can probably be friends and look after each other. If you meet any problems, I can also help."

"That's all?" Xia Fan asked.

"Of course, I have no other hidden intentions." Wei Wushuang coughed after being stared at. "Alright, it'd be great if we can help each other in the examination. Of course, without violating the rules. I have no intention of bribing you with the tea!"

"You mean… collaborate?"

"Yes, collaborate." Wei Wushuang nodded. "I think this examination is drastically different from the other two major examinations. However, helping each other is not considered cheating."

"How so?" Xia Fan took a sip of tea slowly.

"Take the autumn examination, for example, one had to undergo a body search before entering the examination hall. The rooms are segregated and nobody can talk after entering the room. The invigilator even has to accompany the candidate to the toilet. However, look at this…" Wei Wushuang looked around the teahouse. "We're already in the examination venue, but there are no restrictions on communications. Moreover, we can chat while eating!"

"Also, those wearing the same robe." He gestured with his face towards the huge table in the center of the room. "I noticed that they've been together since they were in line. They're from wealthy families and should know things that we don't. If it's like the imperial examination, everyone is competing and they should be wary of each other. However, it doesn't seem like the case now. I think maybe the mystic examination might allow help from one another. Moreover, it would be more advantageous if one works in a group."

Xia Fan raised his eyebrows.

Although Wei Wushuang looked a little dumb, his observation skills were surprisingly excellent.

This was something rare for a teenager.