Chapter 33

Unless King Xuan of Zhou had lost his mind and was excited enough to drive his chariot into battle himself, the Wei Wang troops wouldn’t even have the chance to draw their swords!

Seeing the drum and horn soldiers on the side, Yue Heng suddenly had an idea. He thought of a poem.

"Miss Wen, how much do you know about the Great Illusion Formation and the Battle Poem Illusion? If I recite another battle poem in the Battle Poem Illusion, will it cause any changes?" Yue Heng quickly whispered.

Wen Xinyue replied irritably, "Do you think any poem can be called a battle poem?"

Yue Heng thought for a moment, unsure, and was momentarily at a loss.

The Grand Marshal and others around King Xuan of Zhou had already started directing the flag signals. The messenger waved the King Xuan's flag, giving the battle commands to the drum and horn soldiers on the side!

"The king's army advances, swift as a bird in flight. Like the Yangtze and the Han, like a mountain's peak. Like a river's flow, steady and strong. Unpredictable and invincible, we cleanse the land of Xu!"

The voice of the illusion sounded, and the fifth act of "Chang Wu" began!

"Never mind all this, Miss Wen, I must give it a try, don't blame me!" Yue Heng gritted his teeth and said.

"What are you going to do?" Wen Xinyue exclaimed in surprise. She was forcibly turned around by Yue Heng, their eyes meeting.

Yue Heng didn't know if the poem he had prepared would work, or if it already existed in the Zhongyuan world. He also didn't know if it would have a significant impact on the entire battle.

Finally, he had no idea if what he was about to do would get him killed by Wen Xinyue!

Woo...

Woo woo...

The attack horns sounded, two short and four long, deep and resonant, signaling the advance of the Southern Zhong's vanguard.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

The rhythmic war drums thundered, spreading throughout the army. The "Nan" flag of the vanguard waved on the plain, and the soldiers roared as over a thousand vanguard soldiers of Southern Zhong charged towards the Xu forces.

The fifth act of "Chang Wu," the core of the battle, had begun. It was too late to hesitate!

Taking advantage of Wen Xinyue's distraction by the thunderous drum sounds, Yue Heng grabbed her hands, took a deep breath, and looked into her eyes with deep emotion. He recited in a slightly melancholic tone:

"Drums beat loud, soldiers rush to war.

While others build walls, I march south alone.

Following General Sun, I fight in Chen and Song.

No return for me, my heart is heavy with sorrow.

Where I rest, where I stay, my horse is lost.

Where to find it? In the forest, it has fled.

Life and death, we vowed together.

Holding your hand, I'll grow old with you.

Alas, the distance, we cannot meet.

Alas, the separation, our vow may not be kept."

All scholars knew that "resonant writing," "being there," and "the way of the heart" were necessary conditions to activate the divine palace and nurture a specific literary symbol.

Yue Heng held Wen Xinyue's hands and looked into her eyes with deep emotion, a necessary action.

If he himself couldn't immerse himself in the poetic realm, he wouldn't grasp "being there" and "the way of the heart," and the poem "Drumming" might not resonate, losing its "original" significance.

He was taking a risky move. "Drumming" came from the "Book of Songs - Bei Feng," an ancient text from before the divine punishment. He didn't know if it had been found in the Zhongyuan world.

If it already existed, it would have no effect. He mainly wanted to test if reciting a battle poem in the illusion could influence the operation of the Great Illusion Formation.

"Drumming" began with "Drums beat loud, soldiers rush to war," closely tied to the thunderous war drums and the soldiers' eager fighting, perfectly combining "Drumming" with "Chang Wu."

Thus, the rest of the poem flowed smoothly from Yue Heng's lips.

"Damn it, this is a battlefield, and you're reciting a poem to me!"

Wen Xinyue's first reaction was anger. She tried to break free, but seeing Yue Heng's deep gaze, she felt a moment of dizziness and couldn't help but listen.

Yue Heng was telling a story, and he was the protagonist of "Drumming," a common soldier in a chaotic era.

War broke out, and defenses were being built everywhere. Although it was hard work, at least he didn't have to leave his hometown, which was better than being sent on a distant campaign.

But he was chosen for the expeditionary force, with no idea when he would return, and even if he would survive the battlefield. His fate was far worse than that of the laborers building the walls.

Under the command of General Sun, Yue Heng fought in Chen and Song, with no hope of returning. In the chaos, he even lost his horse, which, like him, didn't want to go to war and fled to the forest, mirroring his desire to return home.

He remembered the vow he made to his wife before the campaign, holding her hand and promising, "In this life, whether we live or die, I will hold your hand and grow old with you!"

But now, standing on the battlefield, he could only be separated from his wife by thousands of miles, unsure when they would meet again. The vow they made together might never be fulfilled!

This was a battle poem, but also an anti-war poem!

Buzz...

A mournful bell sounded, the massive sound wave spreading out, enveloping the entire Pishan and Huai River, breaking through the "Chang Wu" illusion and disrupting the entire Great Illusion Formation. The elemental energies in the formation surged, and all the examiners were forcibly expelled from the illusion, cutting off their connection to "Chang Wu."

"What's happening? Why were we expelled from the illusion?"

"This is the county academy's Great Illusion Formation exam! Could it be an invasion by demons or barbarians?"

"Sir Qi, what's going on? The fifth act of 'Chang Wu' just began, it's not over yet!"

The examiners gathered around County Magistrate Qi, their faces filled with fear. No one had ever heard of such an event in the Great Illusion Formation. Being expelled from the illusion halfway through the exam was unprecedented!

County Magistrate Qi was also surprised. He looked at the headmaster and the other examiners, not immediately answering but listening to their words.

Soon, he confirmed something and felt secretly pleased.

"Please calm down, everyone. There might be a slight error in the academy's formation, but it's not serious!" County Magistrate Qi first calmed them down and gave a look to the headmaster, signaling him to speak privately.

The Great Illusion Formation in the county academy was discovered hundreds of years ago by scholars exploring the Yin South Mountain, in a temple dedicated to Fuxi.

This formation could use Yin Mountain stones to activate an illusion, the content of which was based on specific ancient war poems, making people experience the entire process as if they were there. The merit points were the contribution to the illusion, or the degree of resonance.

This function was very useful. For centuries, scholars used the Great Illusion Formation for initial scholar assessments. However, once the formation fully activated this assessment function, everyone would forget what happened in the illusion after they came out, even the observing examiners. Only the literary symbol tokens paired with the Great Illusion Formation could record each candidate's merit.

"Sir Qi, I can clearly remember the scenes from 'Chang Wu'..." The headmaster was excited, his face showing joy, and he whispered, "This has never happened since the discovery of the Great Illusion Formation. I believe it's a good sign..."

"It must be an accident in the formation, and it must be caused by the new poem Yue Heng recited! Unfortunately, I only heard the beginning, not the end." County Magistrate Qi was still shaken but made a quick decision, whispering, "No one is allowed to leave the academy today. This is a serious matter, and we must give an explanation to the envoy from Qi Prefecture."

"Sir! Sir, the Great Illusion Formation is showing signs of collapse! The Yin Mountain stones are drained of energy and are about to shatter!"

The official responsible for monitoring the formation rushed over, having been operating at the formation's core and never entering the illusion. He was already at a loss due to the formation's continuous anomalies.

Now, with the "Chang Wu" illusion exam not yet over, all the examiners were expelled from the illusion. He finally had a sense of direction and hurriedly reported.

"What!"

County Magistrate Qi was anxious and followed the operator to the formation's control center.

The headmaster was also shocked and shouted, "Colleagues, follow me!"

The core of the Great Illusion Formation was a massive Fuxi Eight Trigram Disc located in the center of the county academy.

At the seven positions of the formation, seven Yin Mountain stones were installed. The control disc was embedded in the center of the Fuxi Eight Trigram, now flashing with red, blue, and purple lights.

The air around the formation rippled, and the light distorted and refracted, creating illusions in the sky like a mirage. Shadows of people and intense battles appeared, reflecting the "Chang Wu" illusion.

County Magistrate Qi grabbed the control disc, his body trembling as his divine palace connected with the Great Illusion Formation, quickly checking.

"Quickly, inject talent energy to stabilize the formation!"

County Magistrate Qi shouted, his eyes wide as he looked at the scholars following him. They hurriedly followed, and the seven or eight most powerful scholars squeezed into the crowd, grabbing the oscillating and roaring control disc, gritting their teeth as they injected their talent energy.

Suddenly, the seven Yin Mountain stones burst with intense light, blinding everyone and causing tears to stream down their faces.

At the same time, a powerful talent energy wave erupted from the control disc, directly impacting the divine palaces of all the scholar examiners, sending them flying three zhang away. The martial and craftsman examiners were also knocked to the ground.

"Talent energy backlash!"

Ah!

All the scholar examiners spat out blood. Two newly promoted second-level students, who were junior lecturers, were even more pitiful, with blood streaming from their faces, noses, and eyes, their divine palaces almost completely destroyed by the talent energy backlash from the Great Illusion Formation. Their faces were pale, stained with red blood, looking extremely terrifying.

Several examiners who recovered first exclaimed, "The formation has completely dimmed!"

County Magistrate Qi and the headmaster spat out more blood and hurriedly looked at the Yin Mountain stones, which had indeed changed from their original bright yellow to a faint, almost white light!...

PS: The previous chapter was heavily revised due to issues with the draft box. This chapter has also been revised, as the poem from the Book of Songs showed up as gibberish! It's just a few obscure characters! PS2: Please continue to recommend and collect! Member clicks are also appreciated. Thank you!