Chapter 99

The five people were momentarily speechless. They could criticize Fang Yun for other things, but when it came to his literary talent, they could find no fault.

Shi Dehong then angrily said, "Is it really him who dares to challenge my teacher's position as the Poet Lord? Yuxuan, you must do your utmost to help the Qing Kingdom! If we lose this Dragon Boat Literary Gathering, the Jing Kingdom will surely humiliate our Qing Kingdom, and we will become sinners of the Qing Kingdom."

Yan Yuxuan said expressionlessly, "I came here prepared with only one poem, thinking it would be enough, but I didn't expect to encounter Fang Yun. My teacher taught me not to care about the gains and losses of a single country or city, but to consider the entire human race. This Dragon Boat Literary Gathering is just a form of the Sea of Learning. If the Jing Kingdom wins, it is a sign of a weak country becoming strong, which is a great fortune for the human race."

Shi Dehong immediately said, "What if from now on everyone says that Fang Yun is more talented than you, Yan Yuxuan, and that you are inferior to him? Would you still be so indifferent?"

Yan Yuxuan's gaze showed a subtle change. He clasped his hands together in front of his abdomen, and his body gradually straightened.

"I like to climb to the peak, not to be beneath others, let alone a mere scholar. If he loses today, it's fine. If he wins, I will change the time of the capital examination. When he goes to the Jing Kingdom for the capital examination, I will participate in the Qing Kingdom's capital examination. I will compete with him for the position of the first scholar and the Sea of Learning! The Dragon Boat Literary Gathering is just a form of the Sea of Learning. To truly determine who is superior, we must compete on the Sea of Learning."

"That's a great idea! I have also prepared a poem, though not as good as the previous one, but with the combined efforts of our six, we will surely surpass them! They are just riding on a wave of momentum. After the first round, they are already exhausted. The Qing Kingdom will surely win!"

"There's no need to panic. The poem I just wrote is not my best. When the boat sets sail, I will have at least eight inches of talent!"

"I'm the same. It's laughable that those Jing Kingdom clowns don't know their place!"

"The Qing Kingdom will surely win!" The other four Qing Kingdom people were inspired, just like the five Jing Kingdom people who were previously encouraged by Fang Yun.

Fang Yun realized the situation was not good. If those four Qing Kingdom people brought out their best poems, the other dragon boats would be unable to compete.

Fang Yun carefully looked at the five people on his side, who clearly had little confidence. They had already given their all.

"Before, we decided that the poems must not be about personal feelings or ancient people, and must not mention weapons or boats. They must be about the Dragon Boat Festival. This cuts off the path of national-stabilizing poems. Without those, it's impossible to stabilize the country. To win, we must write battle poems related to the boat race to speed up the dragon boat. As long as we don't write about boats, we can gain more primordial energy and ultimately overwhelm them!"

Fang Yun thought hard, but suddenly a loud boom echoed in the sky, and the surrounding primordial energy gently rippled. The five dragon boats automatically moved forward.

Fang Yun's boat, the second dragon boat, took the lead, followed by the first dragon boat, which was two zhang behind. The other three dragon boats were ten zhang away, with no hope of catching up.

The crowds on both banks of the river burst into loud cheers, continuously cheering for the second dragon boat.

"Ying ying! Ying ying!" Nunu loudly waved her claws, cheering for Fang Yun.

Yang Yuhuan nervously clutched her handkerchief.

Zhao Zhuzhen also widened her eyes, waiting for the situation to develop.

A green light enveloped the five dragon boats, making them fly across the river at several times the speed of ordinary dragon boats, leaving long trails of water behind, startling the fish.

The drummers on the five dragon boats were beating their drums frantically, in response to the cheers from the crowds on both banks.

The boat moved quickly, and the people on board were unaffected. Everyone was writing their second poem, competing for the remaining primordial energy.

As Shi Dehong put down his pen, a talent aura of one foot and two inches rose from his paper. Although far from the previous one foot and nine inches, it was still enough to earn the admiration of many, who secretly praised him as a worthy disciple of the Poet Lord.

The talent aura of the first dragon boat immediately increased to six feet and nine inches, one foot higher than the second dragon boat.

Suddenly, the first dragon boat, with a loud splash, accelerated and almost instantly overtook the second dragon boat!

The people on the second dragon boat hurriedly wrote, and Qian Juren quickly finished, but this time his poem was only three inches. He sighed lightly, his gaze dimming. If he had more time, he was confident he could write a better poem, but now it was impossible.

Next, Yan Yuxuan wrote a county-level poem, and the total talent aura of the first dragon boat increased by one foot and eight inches, reaching eight feet and seven inches.

The cheers for the second dragon boat weakened. In the second round, the Qing Kingdom had already achieved such a high talent aura with just two people. If the other four completed their poems, the consequences would be unimaginable.

In the history of the Jing Kingdom's dragon boat races, no dragon boat had ever had a talent aura exceeding ten feet.

The other four people on the first dragon boat then finished their poems, and all performed normally.

The talent aura on the Qing Kingdom's dragon boat stood at eleven feet and seven inches!

The first dragon boat sped toward the Dragon Head Bridge, leaving Fang Yun's second dragon boat far behind.

Despite the tens of thousands of people on both banks of the Jade Belt River, no one shouted.

The drumbeats on the dragon boats seemed to be the only sound in the world, hollow and chilling.

Many people from the Jing Kingdom showed signs of despair. The gap between the two countries' literati was too great. Some young students even had red eyes, ready to cry.

"Ying ying! Ying ying!"

Only Nunu was confident, cheering for Fang Yun.

Zhao Zhuzhen sighed softly. It wasn't that Fang Yun was not capable, but that the others were too weak. The Dragon Boat Literary Gathering was ultimately a competition between two teams, not just two individuals.

"Good!" Tong Li, standing on the south bank below the Dragon Head Bridge, couldn't help but shout. He was so happy that he wouldn't have to kneel and lose a holy page. As long as Fang Yun left Jade Sea City, he would surely become a scholar.

Suddenly, a huge fist swung over.

"Beat you, Qing Kingdom scum!" The man said as he struck. The people around him, already angry, immediately started punching and kicking Tong Li.

"I was wrong! I was wrong! I'm not from the Qing Kingdom! I'm a student! My grandfather is a court attendant!" Tong Li shouted. The other students didn't dare to hit him, only helping to shield him and explain.

When the people heard that Tong Li and his group had a Jade Sea City accent, they immediately dispersed.

Tong Li, with a bruised face and a bloody nose, stood up. His friends immediately tore off pieces of their clothes to stop the bleeding.

Tong Li cautiously looked around and whispered, "Fang Yun, you're dead! As soon as you leave Jade Sea City, you're dead for sure! I'll remember this beating and blame it all on you!"

He then looked at the lagging second dragon boat.

The other five people on the second dragon boat had given their all, but in the end, they could only increase the talent aura to seven feet and three inches, four feet and four inches less than the first dragon boat.

The Jing Kingdom officials upstairs sighed softly. This was the Dragon Boat Literary Gathering. The power of one person could never turn the tide, and with various restrictions, even the four great talents might lose here.

Qian Juren looked at the first dragon boat, which was racing like a gale, and his eyes moistened. He had worked so hard, but still lost. The Jing Kingdom would still bear the stigma of eighteen consecutive losses.

"No, we still have Fang Yun! We still have Fang Shuangjia!" Qian Juren suddenly turned to Fang Yun and shouted over the drumbeats, "Fang Yun, it's up to you! It's up to you!"

Fang Yun looked at Qian Juren, nodded heavily, and his heart was stirred.

The poems could not contain words related to weapons or boats, but that didn't mean he couldn't write about boats!

Fang Yun took a deep breath and wrote in regular script, stroke by stroke.

"Reduced Word Mu-Lan-Hua, Dragon Boat Race."

The Jing Kingdom's official, Feng Zimo, who had given up hope, read Fang Yun's new poem in a low voice.

"Red flags held high, flying out from the deep willow grove. Hmm? The word 'flying' is well used, but it's just well used. Is he writing about the dragon boat race? Will he not use the words 'boat' or 'ship'?"

Feng Zimo couldn't help but comment.

Just as Feng Zimo was about to read the second line, a loud and urgent thunderclap came from Fang Yun's paper.

The six people on the first dragon boat were chatting, but the thunderclap made them all pause. Only Yan Yuxuan turned his head sharply, staring intently at Fang Yun.

The thunderclap even drowned out the drumbeats of the five dragon boats, and everyone on both banks heard it clearly. Many people looked at Fang Yun in confusion, not understanding what was happening, but some immediately reacted.

"Sound of the brush?"

"No, it's not complete yet. It can only be called 'initial sound of the brush,' barely entering the first realm of calligraphy."

"This is actually a battle poem?" someone shouted excitedly.

"The Jing Kingdom will surely win!"

Someone shouted, and the previously silent banks immediately erupted in a sea of cheers.

"The Jing Kingdom will surely win!"

Feng Zimo's face suddenly turned red. He used his talent aura to amplify his voice, ensuring that everyone within ten miles could hear him.

"Red flags held high, flying out from the deep willow grove. Drums like spring thunder, breaking through the misty waves and returning far away."

As soon as these words were spoken, countless literati praised them, perfectly capturing the sharpness and speed of the dragon boat breaking through the water, echoing the earlier "flying" word, and imbuing the poem with the essence of a battle poem.

"Cheers shake the earth, startling the fighting spirit of ten thousand people. West of the golden and green pavilion, the first to return with the trophy! Good! Clearly about the dragon boat race, yet not a single word for 'boat' or 'ship,' yet it perfectly captures the essence of the race! It will surely turn the tide!"

As Feng Zimo finished, the paper in front of Fang Yun burned, forming a much stronger force than ordinary poems, enveloping his dragon boat in a glow.

The primordial energy in the entire dragon boat race area suddenly shook, the river water was pressed down by an invisible force, and the other four dragon boats slowed down. The green light on their surfaces visibly decreased, while the green light on the second dragon boat increased rapidly.

"It is indeed a battle poem. Only battle poems can steal the primordial energy of other dragon boats during the Dragon Boat Literary Gathering."

"It's a speed poem, more specifically a wind-drum poem, to help the warship speed up, but it's not a timeless poem."

"How could he possibly write a timeless poem? You're thinking too much."

Tong Li, who had been jubilant, turned pale.

"It's over, it's over." Tong Li said and tried to run away.

A student in plain clothes blocked him, drawing a precious sword from his waist. "My master told me to watch you."

Tong Li knew the man was a palace guard and stood still, muttering, "It's really over..."

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