Chapter 59

The *Analects* is over ten thousand characters long; it would take others an hour to read it even if they read it verbatim. However, after an hour and a half, Fang Yun was already nearing the end.

The people present had been standing there quietly for over an hour.

"… Is there no joy? Friends come from afar. Is there no pleasure? Learning and practicing it at the right time. The Master said."

Fang Yun finished reciting the last character with a slightly hoarse voice, and the entire venue fell silent.

This demonic talent was too astonishing. Compared to Fang Yun, the prodigies and geniuses of Jiangzhou were nothing special.

The Half-Sage remained silent for a long time before asking, "Do you have a teacher who has taught you?"

Hundreds of intense gazes fell on Fang Yun.

A person has three teachers: the teacher who spreads the Way, the teacher who imparts knowledge, and the teacher who resolves doubts.

Among them, the teacher who spreads the Way refers only to Confucius. The teacher who imparts knowledge is the formal teacher who takes on disciples, usually only one. The teachers who resolve doubts can be many. Fang Yun's private school teacher, County Magistrate Cai He who taught him the classics, and even this unknown Half-Sage could be considered his teachers who resolve doubts.

Fang Yun was taken aback. This was a good opportunity, but the problem was that he had already said that his sudden talent was due to the guidance of a mysterious teacher, and he already had a teacher who imparted knowledge.

If he were to change and follow this Half-Sage, not only would it become a blemish on his life, but everything before would be doubted, and people would certainly investigate what happened that day. If a Half-Sage were to test him, he might be considered a reincarnation of a demon sage or an evil being from another world, as the possession of a demon sage had happened before.

Wei Yuanjun almost fainted; this Half-Sage actually wanted to take Fang Yun as a personal disciple!

Liu Zicheng wished he could slap himself and even wanted to cry out loud. He had used all his power to make Wei Yuanjun drive Fang Yun away and even hoped that Fang Yun would be chosen by a sage, but he never expected that he would end up helping Fang Yun greatly. Not only would Fang Yun's name spread across the land, but he would also be favored by a Half-Sage.

Liu Zicheng's mind was in chaos. He couldn't understand how, as a descendant of a noble family and the great-grandson of the Left Chancellor, his repeated schemes against a commoner would end up like this.

Fang Yun clasped his hands and said, "I dare not hide it from the Sage, I already have a teacher who imparts knowledge."

Sighs of disappointment filled the air. To maintain such integrity in front of a Half-Sage was truly commendable.

Gao Minghong, both envious and helpless, said, "If Fang Yun is recorded in history, the historian will surely record today's events like this: 'When Fang Yun was a student, he once underwent a sage selection. After it was over, a Half-Sage wanted to take him as a disciple, but he refused.' The historian who writes this sentence will surely want to strangle Fang Yun."

A nearby scholar said resentfully, "I want to strangle him now."

"He could have refused, but why did he have to be so calm? Couldn't he at least pretend to be terrified? I'm more excited than he is, what kind of situation is this!"

The people around him laughed, even more admiring of Fang Yun.

This made many people even more convinced that Fang Yun's mysterious teacher was at least a Great Scholar.

The Half-Sage sighed lightly and said, "What a pity. Since I have already helped you once, I will help you again. I will give you a chapter of *The Analects - Li Ren*."

When Fang Yun heard this, he was puzzled. When had he helped him? Could it be related to his ability to recite backward or his couplets? By the end, his eyes lit up, and he was even happier than if the Half-Sage had wanted to take him as a disciple.

As soon as the Half-Sage spoke, everyone thought of a possibility, took a deep breath, widened their eyes, and held their breath, waiting for what would happen next.

Suddenly, the Confucian Temple shot a golden pillar of light into the sky, piercing the heavens. Then, a thunderous voice began to recite *The Analects - Li Ren*.

"The Master said: 'To dwell in the neighborhood of benevolence is beautiful. If one chooses not to dwell in such a neighborhood, how can he be wise…'"

This voice spread like rolling thunder in all directions, eventually covering a thousand square miles.

Millions of people looked up at the sky, and many even knelt and bowed.

"The Sage has appeared."

"It's the thunderous voice of the Sage!"

"I wonder which great talent has received the Sage's voice, congratulations!"

"The babies born today are blessed."

"With the Sage's voice, these babies will become the students of that great talent in the future, how enviable."

After a moment, a golden pillar of light, like a fountain, spewed out hundreds of fist-sized golden buds from the Confucian Temple. Then, the buds bloomed, releasing golden characters that danced in the sky, forming a line and flying toward Fang Yun.

The first golden "Master" character entered Fang Yun's head and disappeared, followed by the subsequent characters flying in one by one.

At the moment the golden characters entered his body, Fang Yun felt light and weightless, surrounded by endless golden light. The light was incredibly bright and warm, like a dream.

Then the golden light disappeared, and Fang Yun found himself in the Palace of Literature.

Fang Yun was puzzled when someone suddenly shouted, "Master!"

Then, an invisible force from outside hit the Palace of Literature, causing a loud boom. The Palace of Literature shook violently, and Fang Yun lost his balance, feeling dizzy and a slight burning sensation in his body.

When the sound disappeared, the Palace of Literature continued to shake. Fang Yun saw that it was full of cracks, but a liquid like melted gold appeared in the cracks, quickly repairing them.

"Spoke!"

Another deafening shout, and Fang Yun felt dizzy again. The Palace of Literature cracked again and was filled with the golden liquid.

Fang Yun felt that his consciousness had been sealed by a great force and was only now regaining clarity. This was the legendary Sage's voice, where a Half-Sage used supreme talent to condense sacred words to temper the Palace of Literature. The golden liquid was the transformation of the sacred words.

Each time the sacred words hit the Palace of Literature, it would crack and be repaired, and the talent in the air above Fang Yun's statue would become more condensed. The stars in the sky would become brighter, and the vortex of literary courage would speed up a bit.

Fang Yun calmed down, focused his mind, and fully immersed himself in the experience of the Sage's voice.

Fang Yun knew that the Sage's voice was created after a Half-Sage experienced the movement of the Literary Star, which could be considered a miniature version of the movement of the Literary Star. Only the eldest sons of Half-Sage families would receive the Sage's voice after forming the Palace of Literature, and the chances for others were extremely small.

The higher the literary position, the coarser the talent.

The coarseness of talent at the same literary position is the same, and the stronger the cultivation, the higher the talent, ranging from one inch to ten inches. The more solid the Palace of Literature, the more condensed the talent, and the more talent one can possess and mobilize at the same level of cultivation.

Under the influence of the Sage's voice, Fang Yun's Palace of Literature was continuously strengthened, and his talent was continuously condensed.

After the chapter of *Li Ren* was recited, Fang Yun felt as if he were about to ascend to immortality. He opened his eyes and found himself outside the Palace of Literature, standing in his original place.

Fang Yun clearly felt his body filled with strength, more comfortable than after drinking the blood ginseng from the Dragon Palace. His body, which had been affected by years of malnutrition, seemed to be completely healed.

"Jixian's Fang Yun has great talent and can enter the Dahuang Prefecture's Confucian Academy." The Half-Sage's voice echoed throughout the entire Dahuang Prefecture city.

The golden light above the Confucian Temple also disappeared.

"Send off the Sage." Everyone bowed together.

Suddenly, a great force descended, restraining the power of the Confucian Temple in the Prefecture Academy, and the surrounding air seemed to solidify. A cloud appeared, carrying a lean, middle-aged man in a green robe descending from the sky.

"Meet Lord Li!"

Everyone greeted Li Wenying.

When the Half-Sage arrived, Wei Yuanjun and Liu Zicheng were only afraid, but when Li Wenying appeared, their backs were drenched in sweat, and their legs trembled.

Li Wenying had a dark face, scanned the crowd, and finally looked at Fang Yun, saying, "I know what happened today. What do you think should be done with Wei Yuanjun?"

Wei Yuanjun was terrified and quickly looked up at Fang Yun, his eyes filled with pleading.

Fang Yun, after overcoming the crisis and having his Palace of Literature tempered by the sacred words, had a more agile mind and a clearer understanding of the entire situation.

Fang Yun said, "Wei Yuanjun, if you fully disclose your accomplices and make the right choice, I can plead for you."

Liu Zicheng lowered his head, tightly clenched his teeth, and anxiously awaited the result.

Wei Yuanjun's eyes darkened. He knew that if he betrayed Liu Zicheng, his entire Wei family would face the疯狂的报复 from the Liu family and the Left Chancellor. But if he did not admit it, at most, he would die, and even if Fang Yun and Li Wenying despised him, they would not harm his family.

"All of this was done by me. I wanted to harm you, and it has nothing to do with others."

Fang Yun said without hesitation, "This person, in charge of the Prefecture Academy, fails to select capable individuals, which is dereliction of duty; as a teacher, he defames his students, which is a lack of virtue; as a minister, he forms cliques for personal gain, which is disloyalty; as a human scholar, he acts like a demon, harming a student before the Sage, which is a great rebellion; if it were just this, his life could be spared, but during the sage selection, he harmed me again. If he is not punished, where is the law of our Jing country? Where is the justice of our human race?"

Fang Yun looked at Wei Yuanjun coldly.

"Also, I, Li Wenying, am in Jiangzhou." Li Wenying finished speaking and spat out a three-foot-long white sword wrapped in extremely fine blood threads from his mouth.

Wei Yuanjun was terrified and instinctively tried to activate his official seal, but the talent and official seal of the Confucian Temple were suppressed by Li Wenying's official seal, and he could not control them at all.

"Lord Li, show mercy!" Wei Yuanjun said while spitting out a white ancient sword to block, then activating a private seal he carried, the Scholar's Treasure Mountain Seal, and using the power of *The Mountain Seal* to create a three-zhang-tall transparent mountain shadow that enveloped him.

*The Mountain Seal* is a famous work by a Half-Sage and a very common and effective defensive battle poem.

Just as Wei Yuanjun was about to recite the battle poem, Li Wenying's Blood-Soaked Ancient Sword cut through his verbal attacks and the mountain shadow like a knife through tofu, silently and without a sound.

Wei Yuanjun looked at the Blood-Soaked Ancient Sword approaching him in despair.

Everyone could see clearly that the Blood-Soaked Ancient Sword swept past Wei Yuanjun's neck, his head flew up, blood splattered three feet, and his headless body slowly fell to the ground.

Wei Yuanjun's head rolled on the ground, his eyes looking up, not believing until his death that he would be executed in the Prefecture Academy for driving away a student.

Liu Zicheng immediately knelt down, crying with regret, "Fang Yun, I was wrong! I wanted to harm your reputation, but I didn't expect that after being scolded by Lord Jianmei, Wei Yuanjun would have the intention to kill you. I now resign from my position as a student in the Prefecture Academy and will not participate in the provincial examination for three years. I will reform and start anew. You have such great talent, you are the hope of our human race. If I dare to harm you again, I will be no better than a pig or a dog, just like Wei Yuanjun."

Page AD begins

Page AD ends