Chapter 49: A Gift of Weapons

Page (1/3)

Meng Xueqiao couldn’t help but smile bitterly upon hearing this. On that day, Wu Jiwen had lied to him about preparing for the essay exam, while her two sons had actually been studying poetry. She could even anticipate the poetry topics in advance, let alone the martial exam.

“You should go take a look and see how those two react.”

Sure enough, Meng Xueqiao returned with his head hung low. Without asking, Meng Yuxi could guess that not only were those two confident, but they also mocked Meng Xueqiao, who had only managed to place ninety-ninth.

“Fourth Brother, I suspect they’re carrying some kind of treasure,” Meng Xueqiao said with a frown.

“Is there really treasure in the Dali Kingdom? Something like a rare flying sword?” Meng Yuxi’s eyes widened. Having been here so long, he had never heard of such marvelous items. Their stingy master had never mentioned anything like that either.

“Flying swords? They don’t deserve those. Flying swords are the tools of grandmasters, forged from their own life essence. How could they wield such things?”

“What I mean is a golden-threaded soft armor. Although weapons are provided by the examination grounds for the martial test, this soft armor is concealed within clothing and impossible to detect. Most blades can’t pierce or scratch it — only blunt force can harm it, and even then, barely. Wearing one of these can elevate an ordinary person’s realm to the third rank of Body Refining.”

Meng Yuxi was stunned. If he had known about such a treasure earlier, he would have made sure to get one.

“Isn’t that cheating?” Meng Yuxi asked.

“If you’re not in the top three, the emperor won’t bother to investigate. No one will strip you down to check. Even if someone with keen eyesight spots it, they’ll turn a blind eye — it just makes the rankings look better.” Meng Xueqiao shook his head with a bitter smile. This golden-threaded soft armor was essentially a cheat sheet for the martial exam.

“Wu Jiwen is incredible. To have two of these difficult-to-make garments… Damn, there probably isn’t a third one to be found anywhere in Su City.”

“Fifth Brother, what realm are you at?” Meng Yuxi had wanted to ask this for a long time but hadn’t found the opportunity.

“I’m Body Refining, first rank. I blame myself for being lazy and unwilling to cultivate my true energy patiently. Otherwise, I could have broken through to Qi Refining long ago.” Meng Xueqiao sighed.

“Attention all candidates: the martial exam is about to begin. Please enter the examination grounds in an orderly fashion.”

Page (2/3)

Upon hearing the announcement, the candidates hurried toward the martial exam grounds.

Unlike the essay exam where everyone answers the same questions, the martial exam allows early arrivals to choose their horses and weapons first. The weapons included swords, spears, halberds, axes, hooks, and sabers, but most people only knew how to use swords and sabers. This advantage was precious to the scholarly candidates; any edge was valuable.

Meng Xueqiao pulled Meng Yuxi along toward the martial exam area.

“Be careful if you face Cui Xiucheng. He’s first rank in Qi Refining,” Meng Yuxi reminded him, having heard from their master that one must pass through Bone Refining before reaching Qi Refining. This meant Cui Xiucheng was a full realm above Meng Xueqiao. Although Meng Yuxi didn’t fully understand the difference, he meant well.

“No worries, Fourth Brother. Even at Body Refining, I can hold my own against Qi Refining. Below the Qi Transformation stage, much depends on technique. True energy isn’t enough to guarantee a one-hit kill just by being two realms higher.”

Meng Yuxi grew increasingly interested in this martial exam, eager to try out the skills Zhang Tiantai had taught him.

“Since all candidates are top one hundred from the essay exam, the weapons used in this martial exam will be gifted afterward as a reward for their achievement.”

The candidates cheered and applauded at once. Receiving the emperor’s gift was a tremendous honor for their clans, and all the weapons were exquisite.

“Candidates present, please now select a weapon that suits you.”

At this, the candidates rushed eagerly to the weapon racks. Whether the weapon was convenient mattered less than its value.

In the Dali Kingdom, men typically carried swords when going out. Wearing a sword gifted by the emperor on the streets would be a tremendous honor.

The racks holding the treasured swords were soon emptied. At one point, seven or eight hands reached for the last sword simultaneously.

“Heh, Brother Meng, do you still call these guys scholars?” Cui Xiucheng sneered beside Meng Yuxi.

Meng Yuxi hadn’t noticed when Cui Xiucheng had appeared; his agility was remarkable.

Meng Yuxi smiled faintly. “What should a scholar be like, then?”

With that, Meng Yuxi and Meng Xueqiao advanced to select their weapons. They arrived early enough, but after a brief hesitation, most weapons on the racks were already taken. Now, not only swords but even single-edged daggers were gone.

Meng Xueqiao had to choose a spear and said to Meng Yuxi, “Fourth Brother, an inch longer is an inch stronger. Without swords, choosing the spear is still a big advantage.”

Meng Yuxi nodded. The spear was fine, but it might be inconvenient to use with the ‘Cloud Suppressing Star’ footwork technique. Since the treasured swords were all gone, Meng Yuxi had to think differently. Since Zhang Tiantai had said the Cloud Suppressing Star sword was even more marvelous when shortened to finger length, why not choose a weapon shorter than a sword, easier to manipulate in hand?

Page (3/3)

While Meng Yuxi pondered this, Cui Xiucheng followed but did not engage Meng Yuxi in idle talk this time. Instead, he quickly found his fellow disciples from the Zhen Mountain Sect, and soon held a treasured sword in his hand.

Cui Xiucheng wielded the sword as if it were his due, ignoring the dejected expression of the junior who had yielded it.

“Heh, Cui Xiucheng, you still dare to call yourself a scholar?” Meng Yuxi cursed inwardly, then continued selecting a weapon that matched his cultivation method from the remaining arms.

In a corner of the weapon racks, the bottom row held a collection of short weapons—black and very inconspicuous, extremely short, some not even as long as a forearm. Consequently, no one paid them any attention, barely glancing before walking away.

Meng Yuxi grew interested and picked up each weapon, weighing and examining them carefully. Among them were short clubs, judge’s pens, daggers, and more.

Except for the daggers, the other short blades were all very heavy, no lighter than the sword Meng Yuxi had previously used to kill Qin Ming.

Among them lay a black fan, lying flat on the ground before the rack, as if discarded. This unusual sight piqued Meng Yuxi’s curiosity.

He grabbed the fan and immediately sensed it was no ordinary item. Opening it revealed an ebony surface carved with intricate, hollow patterns. Meng Yuxi couldn’t discern the design—it looked like chaotic black lines, thick and thin, as if moving.

This fan was the heaviest among all short blades Meng Yuxi had handled—indeed, it belonged to a different weight class. Normally, a fan’s frame is hollow, unlike solid forged weapons like short clubs and judge’s pens. It shouldn’t be this heavy.

“Fourth Brother, don’t be careless. That iron fan you chose is a toy. Except for experts in pressure point attacks, no one else could wield it effectively,” Meng Xueqiao said anxiously, holding his spear in one hand and sword in the other, watching as Meng Yuxi seemed to favor the fan.

“Fourth Brother, I just spent a fortune buying a treasured sword. Using that will be more effective in harming enemies,” Meng Xueqiao said, stamping his spear heavily on the ground, embedding it two inches deep.

He reached to take the black fan from Meng Yuxi’s palm to replace it with the sword.

But as soon as he lifted it half an inch, the fan slipped from his grasp and dropped back into Meng Yuxi’s hand.

Meng Xueqiao was stunned and cursed, “What the hell is this thing? It’s as heavy as a bronze cauldron!”