“That may not be the case. The test of the Holy Land Road is not just about the Courage to Write. Of course, Yan Yukong can certainly guarantee a top three position.” Li Fanming said.
Fang Yun shook his head and said, “I’ve had contact with Yan Yukong. He’s not only strong in the Courage to Write, but his heart for the Path of the Saints is also extremely tenacious and pure. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be considered as a potential candidate to surpass Yi Zhishi and become a Semi-Saint. He’s still a Presented Scholar, yet he’s already on the higher Imperial Scholar list in the Demon Clan’s hunting list, and he’s ranked twelfth, making him the top Presented Scholar.”
Qiu Chi, who was standing by, laughed and said, “Fang Zhenguo, you’re really cunning. Your ranking on the Demon Clan’s hunting list is even higher than his. Doesn’t that mean you also have a chance to be the first on the Holy Land Road?”
Everyone laughed, knowing that Qiu Chi was indirectly praising Fang Yun.
As more and more people entered the Literature Hall, Fang Yun and the others were at the end of the line.
As they approached the main entrance of the Literature Hall, Fang Yun looked inside and found it strange that everyone who entered the door disappeared, and the hall was still empty.
As Fang Yun stepped in, his vision went black and then bright again. He found himself in a grassland with a river about thirty feet wide in front of him, with no bridge over it.
On the other side of the river was a canyon, shrouded in white mist, and it was unclear what was inside.
Fang Yun’s eyes flickered slightly, finding the river somewhat familiar.
Thousands of people stood by the river, looking at the slow-flowing water, undecided.
At this moment, Fang Yun heard Liu Zizhi’s voice shouting, “Fang Yun, whether Jing Kingdom can win the first place in the Holy Land Road depends on you! You must suppress the Presented Scholars of the ten nations with your Accomplished Scholar status!”
Fang Yun didn’t expect Liu Zizhi to be so persistent. With these words, even if many people knew that Liu Zizhi was trying to harm him, they would still feel uncomfortable. Literary reputation is real, not false, and one should not shirk from it!
Fang Yun immediately looked in the direction of Liu Zizhi and shouted, “Liu Zizhi, you despicable man, as the top scholar of a state, you tried to harm me at the Mid-Autumn Literature Meeting in the City of Confucius yesterday, and today you want to kill with a borrowed knife. Do you think the scholars of the world are so easily deceived by you? Liu Zizhi, if you are a scholar, after the Holy Land Road, have a literary duel with me. Dare you?”
Everyone turned to look at Fang Yun, most of them curious and sympathetic, only those from Qing Nation and Wu Nation had different expressions.
The crowd between Fang Yun and Liu Zizhi parted, and the two locked eyes.
Since being shocked by Fang Yun’s three poems yesterday, Liu Zizhi realized that his previous methods were no match for Fang Yun. He must use all means necessary and seize every opportunity to strike.
Liu Zizhi laughed and said, “We are both from Jing Kingdom, how can we casually have a literary duel? Besides, you are an Accomplished Scholar and I am a Presented Scholar. If I were to duel with you, others would say that I am bullying the weak. Let’s forget it.”
Suddenly, a familiar voice came, “I am from Qing Nation and also a Presented Scholar. I want to have a literary duel with you. Dare you?”
Everyone immediately looked towards the source of the voice. Fang Yun couldn’t see because he was blocked by others, but he heard someone whisper the name of the person.
“It’s Yan Yukong, the disciple of the Semi-Saint.”
Liu Zizhi seemed to have something stuck in his throat, and his face showed embarrassment. Yan Yukong was not only a disciple of the Semi-Saint, but also considered a member of the Yan Zi Prominent Family. Even if Liu Zizhi was crazy, he wouldn’t dare to offend such a big figure.
Fang Yun glanced at Liu Zizhi and said, “Brother Yan, thank you for your righteous action. However, I will handle my issues with the Liu family myself. Otherwise, the Liu family will surely accuse me of colluding with outsiders and betraying Jing Kingdom.”
Qiu Chi immediately whispered, “Well said ‘accuse’. The Left Chancellor Liu Shan can be considered a traitor of Jing Kingdom.”
“Alright then. See you all at the end of the Holy Land Road.” Then, everyone saw Yan Yukong slowly enter the river. The water submerged him, and he walked step by step under the water.
With each step, his body shook. Halfway through, he was even swept sideways by the water for a few steps before he could stabilize and continue forward.
Strangely, his clothes were not wet by the water, nor was he tilted by the water, but his body was indeed under force. Fang Yun realized that the Weak Water seemed different from ordinary water, and even the pseudo-dragon pearl couldn’t avoid it.
Fang Yun quietly asked Li Fanming, “What’s going on? This is just the first test, and even Yan Yukong has such difficulty crossing the river?”
“This Weak Water is not attacking the body, but the Literature Palace. Think about it, is a large Literature Palace washed more by water, or a small Literature Palace?”
Fang Yun was stunned because his Literature Palace was extremely large. The limit of others’ Literature Palace was like a royal palace, but his Literature Palace had already surpassed the ordinary sense of architecture, with an area equivalent to a small town.
Li Fanming said, “It’s not entirely good for the Literature Palace to be small. If it’s not strong enough, it will be washed away by the Weak Water. No matter how big the Literature Palace is, as long as it’s strong, it won’t be washed away. However, the reason why Yan Yukong is like this is because he didn’t use the power of the Courage to Write. If he did, he would have crossed it long ago. Now he’s conserving energy.”
Fang Yun looked at the thirty-foot-wide Weak Water River with worry. He was sure that his Literature Palace was more than ten times larger than Yan Yukong’s. Even Yan Yukong was like this, so he probably couldn’t cross the Weak Water River without using the Courage to Write. But once he used the Courage to Write and was discovered, it would definitely shock the world, and the significance would be even greater than becoming a Presented Scholar in front of the Saints.
Soon, Yan Yukong walked out of the Weak Water River, and the rest of the people went into the water one after another.
Li Fanming said, “There are many Weak Waters in the Holy Land, and it’s impossible to have a bridge for you to cross. It’s even worse if it rains Weak Water. Sigh, let’s go.” With that, he carried the chubby white rabbit into the water.
As soon as he entered the water, the big rabbit struggled slightly, showing a painful expression. But then Li Fanming used the power of the Courage to Write to protect the big rabbit, and it calmed down.
Fang Yun noticed that Li Fanming’s body was much more stable than Yan Yukong’s, not being swept sideways by the water, but his steps were very slow, and his body shook from time to time. Obviously, his Literature Palace was far less solid than Yan Yukong’s, and it was very painful to be washed by the Weak Water.
Fang Yun carefully observed the people who entered the Weak Water. Most of them were not as good as Li Fanming, and some Presented Scholars, even with the use of the Courage to Write, seemed to be in great pain.Soon, Fang Yun saw an Accomplished Scholar suddenly tremble violently, losing control of his body and falling into the Weak Water. However, an invisible force surrounded him, lifting him up and placing him on the bank.
Subsequently, more and more people were fished out unconscious. Apart from a few Presented Scholars, most of them were Accomplished Scholars.
By the time Li Fanming crossed the Weak Water River, Fang Yun had not yet entered the water. At this moment, only about forty people who had not entered the water remained, all of them Accomplished Scholars.
Nearly a thousand people lay unconscious by the river. Just this Weak Water River had eliminated nearly one-fifth of the people.
Without exception, all of Li Fanming’s classmates had crossed the river. Being able to study in the Kong Prefecture Academy was a sign of their excellence.
“Fang Yun, why aren’t you crossing the river?” Li Fanming stood on the opposite bank, looking at Fang Yun with confusion.
Those who had crossed the river and those who hadn’t all turned to look at Fang Yun. Liu Zizhi had also crossed the river, but this time he didn’t speak, instead staring intently at Fang Yun.
Fang Yun could only nod helplessly and slowly step into the water.
As his legs entered the water, Fang Yun felt strange. The touch of the Weak Water was very different from ordinary water, extremely soft, like a cloud or cotton. Moreover, he couldn’t feel any temperature, which was very special.
The moment his body touched the Weak Water, Fang Yun felt a strange force suddenly appear outside his Courage to Write, impacting it. This force started like a trickle, then became a raging river, then a huge wave, and finally turned into a tsunami.
From a trickle to a tsunami, it all happened in the blink of an eye.
Fang Yun had the illusion that all the water of the East Sea was impacting his Courage to Write, which was like a small boat in a storm.
This Weak Water was not real water, but more like a spiritual impact that penetrated everywhere, washing the Courage to Write from all directions.
The Courage to Write had six sides to bear the force, so the impact of the Weak Water was growing geometrically, thousands of times more than that of ordinary Presented Scholars!
Fang Yun had only walked to waist-deep in the Weak Water when he felt dizzy and his body was pushed sideways.
“This…”
Thousands of people were dumbfounded. Even those unconscious Accomplished Scholars could hold on until their whole bodies were submerged before being washed away. Now Fang Yun was pushed to stumble, which was too strange. Perhaps only a Child Scholar would be like this.
Liu Zizhi couldn’t help but laugh, saying, “So this is the number one Accomplished Scholar in the world, with such a weak Courage to Write. Overrated and undeserving. So fragile!”
Li Fanming said coldly, “How do you know it’s because his Courage to Write is too weak? I think his Courage to Write is too large, and the impact he bears far exceeds ours!”
“No matter how large his Courage to Write is, can it be dozens or hundreds of times larger than Yan Yukong’s? Besides, look at his expression. He’s closing his eyes in pain, obviously because his Courage to Write is not strong enough. His Courage to Write is not solid, and now he must be in extreme pain, as if his brain is being torn apart, ten times more painful than us.”
“Bullshit! If his Courage to Write is not strong, how could he reach the third mountain of Book Mountain?”
“Who knows what happened in Book Mountain? Maybe it doesn’t test the strength of the Courage to Write at all. Maybe he used some means, but now he’s exposed when he encounters the real Weak Water! Fang Yun is finished! No need to watch anymore! What a pity, I thought I would meet him in the Holy Land, who would have thought, the model of literati, the Fang Yun who can stabilize the nation with his poetry, is so incapable! Haha! I’m going to strive for the top eighty Presented Scholars, goodbye!”
Liu Zizhi laughed loudly, as if he had avenged a deep grudge, and finally looked at Fang Yun in the Weak Water with contempt, and turned to leave.
“What a pity, he can’t even pass the first test of the Holy Land.” Someone shook his head, seemingly regretful, but actually gloating.
“Alas, this is the hidden danger of sudden fame. He has talent but his Courage to Write is not solid, like a castle in the air. If he becomes a Presented Scholar, he probably won’t be able to condense the Courage to Write. If he can learn from this, it might be a good thing for him, but his future will be much dimmer.” Someone finished speaking and left.
Most of the people from Jing Kingdom who saw this scene showed sadness. They didn’t expect that this genius, who was hailed as the only hope of Jing Kingdom, had such a fragile Courage to Write. This meant that Fang Yun’s foundation was extremely weak, and the higher his literary position, the greater the danger. His Courage to Write would inevitably collapse in the near future.
Someone suddenly said with disappointment, “I thought he would be my strong competitor in the journey to the Holy Land. Unfortunately, I was overthinking. I should still chase after Yan Yukong.”
Li Fanming looked over, it was Feng Yang, who was as famous as Yan Yukong. He had a mocking look, but also regret and pity.
The man who had always been flattering Fang Yun, Qiu Chi, silently watched Fang Yun and said softly, “Let’s go, he’ll be fine.”
“I’ll wait a little longer.” Li Fanming said.
“I’ll wait too.” Zu Yuanhe said.
“We are not like you people from the Semi-Saint Prominent Families. We have a great chance to be among the top eighty Presented Scholars. I’ll go first.” After Qiu Chi finished speaking, he quickened his pace and ran towards the Strange Wind Canyon.
However, Fang Yun, who was under the Weak Water, was full of doubts, “Isn’t the impact of the Weak Water supposed to be very painful? Why do I just feel dizzy and shaky, but not in pain at all?”
(To be continued.)