Chapter 139 – The Wolf Youth
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
(TN: Way of Choices will be on break from December 25th, 2017 – January 7, 2018)
Upon hearing Tang Thirty-Six"s comment, Chen Changsheng knew who the youth under the pavilion was. After becoming acquainted with Tang Thirty-Six, and even more after becoming schoolmates with him in the Orthodox Academy, he had heard the words "wolf cub" from his mouth far too many times. Only now did he realize that this small wolf had been in the north this entire time.
A wolf was not a dog, and so being called a wolf cub was not an insult as being called a dog pup would be. Tang Thirty-Six and many other young geniuses on the Proclamation of Azure Sky had grown accustomed to using the term "wolf cub" to describe that terrifying youth from the north. In reality, it was used to ensure that they and this youth remained on the same level, to close a sort of distance between them, and it also signified…respect.
The first time Chen Changsheng heard Tang Thirty-Six mention the wolf cub was in the inn near the Mausoleum of Books. At the time, he felt that when Tang Thirty-Six said those words, his mood was rather complicated, a mixture of both fear and respect. It must be known that Tang Thirty-Six was such a proud youth that even Qiushan Jun and Gou Hanshi did not command his respect.
He had never asked Tang Thirty-Six who this wolf cub was, nor had he inquired on the background or teacher of this wolf cub. This was because all his energy had been focused on cultivation, and also because he could hear from Tang Thirty-Six"s tone that this wolf cub was very far away, so he naturally wouldn"t care too much.
But today, in front of the Li Palace, before the rising sun, his gaze had fallen on this thinly-clothed youth and found it impossible to pull away. Now, he realized that this youth had a very unusual name: Zhexiu. Presumably, if he wanted to forget this name in the future, it would be extremely difficult.
"Wrathful Zhexiu…" Luoluo stood next to him and looked at the youth in the pavilion. She whispered, "This is also my first time seeing him."
Chen Changsheng could hear the shaking in her voice and glanced at her. He saw that the gaze she aimed at the youth was br.i.m.m.i.n.g with sympathy and, for some reason, he suddenly felt a little uncomfortable.
"I think that this is the first time everyone partic.i.p.ating has seen him."
Tang Thirty-Six looked at the youth, his expression complex. "From his birth to cultivation to hunting, he"s always been in the cold snowy plains of the north and has never once left. Even the people of Snowhold Pa.s.s rarely see him, let alone us fellows who live in the peaceful and flourishing world."
Upon hearing these melancholic words, Chen Changsheng fell silent for a time, then asked, "So just what sort of person is he exactly?"
"He is a demi-human."
Tang Thirty-Six glanced at Luoluo and added, "A true demi-human."
The demi-humans and humans had a very close alliance, but they rarely married, and there were no sad and beautiful tales of love about the two races.
This was because the intermarriage of the two races usually produced poor results.
A demi-human human was the descendant of a demi-human and a human. These hybrids resulting from the mixing of two species were innately intelligent, but they would often encounter obstacles in cultivation that were difficult to resolve.
Luoluo"s father was the White Emperor and her mother was a human princess from the Great Western Continent. Thus, she was a demi-human human. On the surface, she could not cultivate in the explosive techniques of the White Emperor because she was female. In reality, it was known only to the few people closest to the White Emperor Imperial clan that it was her mixed blood that made it impossible for her to cultivate the White Emperor"s techniques to the most profound levels.
The White Emperor couple had a very good relationship, so it was absolutely out of the question for the White Emperor to take a concubine. The White Emperor couple were also very doting on their sole daughter and were not willing to have another. Since Luoluo was unable to cultivate the techniques of the White Emperor clan to their peak, she could not inherit the White Emperor"s throne. This was currently the greatest problem facing the vast domain of the demi-humans. Such important figures like Jin Yulu and Guardian Li treated Chen Changsheng like one of their own not merely because Luoluo had acknowledged him as her teacher, but because they saw that with Chen Changsheng"s a.s.sistance, there was a chance that Princess Luoluo could resolve her difficulties.
The youth called Zhexiu was under very similar circ.u.mstances to Luoluo. His father had been a member of the wolf tribe and his mother was a human. However, his parents" blood had not been as powerful or n.o.ble as Luoluo"s parents, and his father"s blood had the overwhelming advantage. Thus, his talent in cultivation had been relatively well-maintained, but the problems he encountered were far more serious than Luoluo"s.
Two years ago when the Great Zhou Dynasty was conferring military honors, the Divine Empress had a conversation with the Pope. Later on, the contents of this conversation were leaked, letting the entire continent know that the wolf youth had a problem—a major problem that was very difficult to address, a problem that not even the Divine Empress or the Pope could resolve. It was just that no one knew what exactly the problem was.
In the end, a secret bit of news was actually sent from Xuelao City to the Central Plains. Based on the narratives of some demons who had escaped the hands of the wolf youth by luck, it could roughly be determined that the problem confronting this wolf youth was a mental one. This was also probably why he had been known by both the demon and human armies on those cruel plains of snow as Wrathful Zhexiu.
After hearing all this, Chen Changsheng turned once more to the youth under the pavilion, but now he found that the youth seemed even lonelier.
Xuanyuan Po said, "He"s also very famous in our tribe."
In the vast domain of the demi-humans, the majority of tribes still lived off hunting, and so they regarded outstanding hunters with the highest respect.
Wrathful Zhexiu was the most outstanding of hunters.
He interacted with neither humans nor demi-humans. He walked amongst the snowy plains and hunted demons for a living.
The number of demons that had died at his hands over the past few years was difficult to count.
Whether intentionally or unintentionally, he had resolved many problems for the Great Zhou Northern Army, so when the Great Zhou Dynasty conferred military honors, his name would never be missing. When he expressed his wish to use the ident.i.ty of a student of Star Seizer Academy to partic.i.p.ate in the Grand Examination, the Great Zhou Army, from top to bottom, gave him the warmest of welcomes.
It was at this moment that Su Moyu walked over. He also gazed at the distant pavilion and asked, "All of you also recognized him?"
Chen Changsheng nodded.
"Earlier during the literary test, Gou Hanshi and Tianhai Shengxue thought that there was something off about his eyes, after which I began to think that it might be him." Su Moyu bowed to Luoluo and then continued, "I hear that both His Majesty the White Emperor and the Divine Empress want to obtain his service, but no one has been able to find him. I didn"t expect him to partic.i.p.ate in the Grand Examination."
A wolf would travel one thousand li to eat meat.
Why had this wolf youth who always kept to himself left the snowy plains and come to the bustling capital to partic.i.p.ate in the Grand Examination?
"He"s interested in the Heavenly Tomes?" Chen Changsheng proposed, his gaze turning in the direction of the Mausoleum of Books.
Tang Thirty-Six replied, "Everyone is interested in the Mausoleum of Books, but if he took all the demons that he killed and converted it into military merit, he would have the right to enter the Mausoleum of Books quite a few times."
No one knew why the wolf youth was partic.i.p.ating in the Grand Examination.
At this point, all the examinees already knew of his true ident.i.ty, but n.o.body approached the pavilion, much less attempted to start a conversation with the youth.
This even included the examiners. The eyes of everyone in the crowd were filled with respect, and there was simply no one willing to approach him.
Even Gou Hanshi and Tianhai Shengxue, both already at Ethereal Opening and the strongest out of all the examinees, did not walk over.
This youth stood there, still very lonely, both the mountain and pavilion becoming lonely as a consequence.
"He is very strong," Luoluo suddenly said.
It was only right that this wolf youth be very strong. He had always been ranked second on the Proclamation of Azure Sky, all the way until this year"s impromptu revision, when he was finally surpa.s.sed by Luoluo. In the past two years, he had only been beneath Xu Yourong, and many people believed that this was only because of how difficult it was to find him. If it were truly a life-or-death struggle, even Xu Yourong might not be a match for him.
Because what this youth was best at was killing.
If one were to total up the number of kills of all the people currently on the southern sh.o.r.e of the Qu River, both examinees and examiners, this number would certainly be smaller than Zhexiu"s.
From the distant Hall of Shining Words came the clear and lingering toll of the bell, signaling that both the literary test and martial test of the Grand Examination had come to a close.
After a count, the number of examinees that had not been eliminated totaled one hundred and thirteen.
The Grand Examination had three banners.1 The first banner took three people, the second banner took ten people, and the third banner took thirty people, for a total of forty-three people.
So it was every year.
This was because there were forty-three paths to enter the Mausoleum of Books.
Entering the three banners meant obtaining the right to enter the Mausoleum of Books, which was the goal for the vast majority of partic.i.p.ants in the Grand Examination.
To view the Heavenly Tomes and comprehend the Dao was the dream of every cultivator. Moreover, countless years of history had proved that entering the mausoleum was a necessary part of becoming a true expert.
The examinees were lined up according to the time that they crossed the Qu River.
The wolf youth was naturally first.
The gazes aimed at him by the crowd were rather complex. Everyone naturally knew that the name of "Zhang Tingtao" was fake.
Under the guidance of the Li Palace priests, the hundred-odd examinees departed the southern sh.o.r.e of the Qu River and headed even deeper into the Garden of the Morning Sun.
It did not take long before they arrived before a green tree.
In the early spring, the trees lining the streets of the capital had only grown green buds, but this tree had innumerable green leaves, which swayed about in the chilly wind like some self-satisfied fellow.
There were many aspects that this tree could be proud of. Besides its verdant green, it was also very tall.
The clouds and mists slightly enveloped the higher branches, and the top of the tree was completely engulfed by the clouds.
The trunk was extremely think. Ten or more people would be needed to completely encircle it.
At the bottom of the tree was a hole, pitch-black and rather sinister-looking.
The Li Palace priests led the examinees into this hole.
Beyond this hole was a paradise.
It was a porcelain-blue even more perfect than the sky outside the tree.
A few clouds drifted about this blue sky.
In the distance, several palaces could be seen.
Chen Changsheng felt this sight to be rather familiar.
Luoluo said, "Teacher, you"ve been here before."
Only now did Chen Changsheng understand that the location for the one-on-one matches of the Grand Examination was actually the Minor Li Palace, also known as the Education Palace.
In the cultivation world, this place had an even more famous name.
The Pope"s Green Leaf World.
Those examinees who were entering a miniature world for the first time had their jaws agape, their expressions br.i.m.m.i.n.g with shock.
It was just like Chen Changsheng and Xuanyuan Po"s first time in this place.
Right now, Chen Changsheng would naturally not show the expression of a countryside youth that would earn the jeers of Tang Thirty-Six.
He was very calm and so noticed a few details.
Many examinees were exclaiming in amazement at the Pope"s Green Leaf World.
The wolf youth was not looking at this world, but at Luoluo.
Chen Changsheng suddenly felt an acute sense of danger.
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1.The three banners of the Grand Examination are based on the imperial examinations of Imperial China. The first banner took three people, but the number of people taken by the second and third varied over time.↩