Chapter 10

"Su Lin, please wait a moment. I will send a holy message to inform His Majesty and the Holy Temple of the great news that you have been enlightened by the words of the Sage. However, when you were enlightened, the energy was so intense that although ordinary people could not see the light, the imperial seal and the holy statue of Confucius in the Holy Temple could sense it."

With his cultivation greatly advanced, County Magistrate Xu did not hesitate to expend his holy power to write four letters with the Heavenly Virtue Pen made from the hair and bones of a demonic beast. The first was to the Prefect of Jian'an, Yuan Tianzhang; the second to the Governor of Jianzhou, Pang Shihua; the third to the King of the State, Sun Jianzhi; and the last one, more boldly, to the Holy Temple of the Nine States.

As the news was reported level by level, Prefect Yuan Tianzhang was stunned, Governor Pang Shihua was greatly surprised, and King Sun Jianzhi laughed heartily. However, the semi-saints of the Holy Temple were both pleased and worried. For when the Second Sage Mencius was on his deathbed, he left a prophecy: "If anyone is enlightened by the words of Confucius, a great calamity will befall the human race."

"Today, a scholar from the State of Wu, Su Lin, has been enlightened by Confucius' 'Way of Not Being a Vessel' at the age of fifteen. What are your thoughts, my lords?"

Liu Yanfang, the current Chief Saint, frowned after receiving the report from County Magistrate Xu and asked the thirty-one semi-saints seated around the holy statue of Confucius for their opinions. The saints smiled but did not speak, some shaking their heads, others nodding. In the end, Chief Saint Liu Yanfang sighed and shook his head, saying, "Being enlightened by the words of the Sage is no ordinary matter. Regardless of whether it involves a great calamity for the human race, it should not be spoken of to outsiders."

After speaking, Liu Yanfang used his finger as a pen to write in the air, the golden characters flowing like dragons and snakes. There were only two characters: one was "禁" (prohibit), and the other was "口" (mouth).

Just writing these two characters seemed to have cost Liu Yanfang a great deal of effort. When the characters were formed, he pointed them toward the sky and said firmly, "Go!"

Instantly, the two golden characters soared through the sky and descended upon the territory of the State of Wu. King Sun Jianzhi was laughing heartily, marveling at the talent that had emerged in Wu, when the golden characters descended from the heavens, carrying a faint aura of solemnity.

"Which saint is so despicable and shameless to issue a prohibition on me, the King of Wu? Can a mere semi-saint issue such a command?"

King Sun Jianzhi's eyes narrowed, and he quickly summoned the national treasure, the Dragon-Snake Seal. The "禁口" (prohibit mouth) characters, after a brief struggle with the seal, were ultimately defeated and absorbed by the Dragon-Snake Seal. King Sun Jianzhi, now panting and with a look of fear, speculated to himself, "Being enlightened by the words of the Sage is indeed no ordinary matter, capable of making the Chief Saint Liu Yanfang issue a 'prohibition'."

King Sun Jianzhi, possessing the national treasure, the Dragon-Snake Seal, could resist the power of a semi-saint, but others were not so fortunate.

Governor Pang Shihua, Prefect Yuan Tianzhang, County Magistrate Xu Wenliang, County Deputy Li Ting, scholars Xu Lingxiao, Dong Zijin, Dong Feng, Su Liu's wife, and Su Wen...

Even Su Lin himself was instantly bound by a powerful holy force. Even though they knew Su Lin had been enlightened by the words of the Sage, they could not speak of it, such was the power of the semi-saint's prohibition.

"This... the Holy Temple has personally issued a prohibition. This is serious! This is serious!"

County Magistrate Xu was greatly alarmed, his holy power flowing for a while before he calmed down. He smiled bitterly, took a golden "勤" (diligence) character from the county seal, and handed it to Su Lin, saying, "Su Lin, this is the '勤' character you submitted a few days ago. Now that you have been enlightened, you no longer need to consume this character to participate in the county examination. I will return it to you."

"Thank you, County Magistrate Xu. However, this matter has alarmed the Holy Temple, and even a prohibition has been issued. Should I go back and tell my stepmother, younger brother, and sister to keep silent as well?" Su Lin was somewhat anxious, not knowing that his enlightenment by the words of the Sage had alarmed the Holy Temple, leading to a personal prohibition by the Chief Saint.

"There is no need. Su Lin, the power of a semi-saint, including myself, means that anyone who knows about this matter can no longer speak a single word about it. Rest assured! This matter is of great importance. The barbarian and demon races covet our human race greatly, and they must not be allowed to know about it."

After admonishing Su Lin a few more times, County Magistrate Xu let him return home and instructed him to prepare well for the county examination the day after tomorrow.

Back at home, Su Lin sat alone at his desk, took out the "勤" character returned by County Magistrate Xu, and with the holy force flowing in his wisdom aperture, he shouted, "The path to the mountain of books is through diligence! '勤' character, return to your place!"

With a swoosh, the holy force illuminated, and the "勤" character followed the light and was absorbed into Su Lin's wisdom aperture. Instantly, Su Lin felt a sense of comfort, his hearing and vision became sharper, and his thoughts flowed more smoothly.

"Indeed, with this '勤' character, my efficiency in reading and doing things has greatly improved, and even the flow of holy force has increased by fifty percent. I wonder what 'character' I will obtain from the Word Forest when I become a scholar and enter the barbarian world."

This "勤" character was obtained by Su Lin's father, Su Jingtian, when he became a scholar and entered the Word Forest.

In the barbarian world of Tianren Continent, there is a magical area called the Word Forest. Any scholar who has obtained the rank of scholar can enter the Word Forest and obtain a "Holy Character" representing their character and personality.

"The nine true words of '仁' (benevolence), '义' (righteousness), '礼' (propriety), '智' (wisdom), '信' (trustworthiness), '恕' (forgiveness), '忠' (loyalty), '孝' (filial piety), and '悌' (fraternity) have been taken by the nine sages of the states and have become the national treasures. Confucius said, 'Benevolence is invincible.' The State of Lu, which inherited the '仁' character from Confucius, is the most powerful, and Confucius once said, 'Benevolence is invincible.' The State of Zou, the homeland of the Second Sage Mencius, is the second most powerful, using '义' to govern the state. The State of Zhou uses '礼' to establish the state, and so on..."

The map of the states of Tianren Continent slowly formed in Su Lin's mind. The Holy Temple is at the center of the nine states, where all scholars who have reached the semi-saint level cultivate. The edge of the nine states is the Great Wall, beyond which lies the barbarian world, inhabited by the five major tribes of Man, Yi, Di, Rong, and Hu, as well as smaller tribes like the Qiang and Li. These tribes are not entirely human but are the result of the interbreeding of demons and humans, forming barbarian tribes.

Some have snake bodies and human heads, others have wolf heads and human bodies. These barbarian tribes do not cultivate thoughts or understand benevolence and righteousness, relying solely on their physical strength to raid human settlements, particularly enjoying the consumption of human scholars. They often serve as cannon fodder and vanguards for demon invasions. However, thousands of years ago, Confucius, along with the semi-saints of the Hundred Schools, used their holy power to construct the Great Wall, completely isolating these barbarian tribes in the barbarian world beyond the Great Wall.

However, although the Great Wall is more than ten thousand miles long, it has weak points, and small groups of barbarian tribes often break through and raid the human settlements in the Central Plains, with the northern Hu and southern Man tribes being the most active. Fortunately, each state has border troops and scholars with ranks to kill the barbarians and suppress the demons.

"In the Word Forest of the barbarian world, the 'Holy Characters' of '仁' (benevolence), '义' (righteousness), '礼' (propriety), '智' (wisdom), '信' (trustworthiness), '恕' (forgiveness), '忠' (loyalty), '孝' (filial piety), and '悌' (fraternity) are unique and cannot be obtained again. However, characters like '勤' (diligence), '勇' (courage), '让' (yielding), '力' (strength), and '慧' (wisdom), although not as powerful as the nine true words, can be continuously generated in the Word Forest and each has its own function..."

Su Lin slowly digested the information in his mind. After absorbing the "勤" character, his thinking became more agile, and his efficiency in doing things improved.

Although the "Wordless Heavenly Book" in his mind could help him search any classic or scripture, it was only a search engine and not his own thoughts. In Tianren Continent, thoughts are paramount. Su Lin knew that, like the four words "君子不器" (a gentleman is not a vessel), if one cannot understand the ideological content, reading them a thousand or ten thousand times would be of no use.

Therefore, although Su Lin could search for countless excellent poems and classics of the Chinese nation, and most of these classics had never appeared in Tianren Continent, if Su Lin did not truly understand these poems and classics and internalize their ideas, even if he copied them, they would not belong to him.

"My foundation in ancient Chinese is not strong, and relying on the Wordless Heavenly Book to cheat is only a temporary expedient. To grow and thrive in Tianren Continent, I must follow the rules here, enrich my thoughts, and use thoughts as a weapon, embracing the ideas of the Hundred Schools..."

Recognizing his shortcomings, Su Lin resolved to work hard. Over the next two days, he stayed indoors and studied diligently. With the help of the "勤" character and the Wordless Heavenly Book, Su Lin's efficiency in reading and understanding improved significantly.

Soon, the day of the county examination arrived. Su Lin had read for two days and two nights, but instead of feeling tired, his mind was clearer. From the words of the sages to the works of great scholars, he could provide clear and convincing answers. If someone asked, Su Lin could combine the search function of the Wordless Heavenly Book to provide a well-reasoned response to any debate topic.

"Brother, hurry... we'll be late for the county examination."

Su Lin gathered his spirit and, hearing his sister Su Ru's call, walked out of the door with nothing but the clothes on his back. The county examination is a major event for the nine states of Tianren Continent, and candidates enter the examination hall empty-handed, with the state providing all the necessary supplies, including pens, ink, paper, and food.

"Look, Su Lin from the Su family has actually come to take the county examination. What a waste of a '勤' character from Scholar Su!"

"Yes! At fifteen, he hasn't been enlightened, so why waste a '勤' character to participate in the county examination? It would be better to sell the '勤' character. I heard that a '勤' character is worth a thousand taels of silver on the black market!"

"It is said that nearly a thousand candidates from Fengle County are taking the examination, but only the top twenty will be selected as child scholars. The competition is truly fierce!"

...

Accompanied by his sister Su Ru, Su Lin arrived at the examination hall. However, his appearance quickly drew a round of cold ridicule from the onlookers, as they did not know that Su Lin had been enlightened just two days ago, and it was a "Holy Enlightenment" that had alarmed even the king and the Holy Temple.