The Path of the Sage

The five people were speechless. They could criticize Fang Yun for many things, but they couldn't find any fault in his literary talent.

Shi Dehong angrily said, "How dare he try to take the position of the Poet Lord from my mentor? Yukong, you must do everything you can to help the Qing Kingdom! If we lose this Dragon Boat Literary Event, the Jing Kingdom will surely humiliate us, and we will become the sinners of the Qing Kingdom."

Yan Yukong, with an expressionless face, said, "I came here with only one poem prepared, thinking it would be enough, but I didn't expect to encounter Fang Yun. My mentor taught me not to care about the gains and losses of one nation or city, but to consider the problem from the perspective of the entire human race. This Dragon Boat Literary Event is just a small matter. If the Jing Kingdom wins, it is a sign of a weak nation becoming stronger, which is a great fortune for the human race."

Shi Dehong immediately said, "But what if everyone starts saying that Fang Yun is more talented than you, Yukong, and that you are inferior to him? Will you still not care?"

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Yan Yukong's gaze showed a slight change. He clasped his hands together and placed them in front of his abdomen, gradually straightening his body.

"I enjoy standing at the peak, not being beneath others, especially just an accomplished scholar. If he loses today, so be it. But if he wins, I will change the time of the Jing Kingdom's examination. Whenever he goes to the Jing Kingdom for the examination, I will participate in the Qing Kingdom's examination. I want to compete with him for the position of the nation's top scholar and strive to surpass him in the sea of learning! The Dragon Boat Literary Event is just a form of the sea of learning. If we want to determine the winner, we must compete on the sea of learning."

"That's a great idea! I have also prepared a poem. Although it is not as good as before, with the six of us working together, we will surely surpass them! They are just a group of people who are only strong for a moment. After one round, they will be exhausted. The Qing Kingdom will definitely win!"

"Don't panic, everyone. The poem I just wrote is not my best. When the boat sets sail, I will have at least eight inches of literary talent!"

"Me too. Those clowns from the Jing Kingdom are ridiculous!"

"The Qing Kingdom will win!" The other four people from the Qing Kingdom were inspired by their fighting spirit, just like the five people from the Jing Kingdom who were previously motivated by Fang Yun.

Fang Yun realized that things were not looking good. Once those four people from the Qing Kingdom brought out their best poems, the other dragon boats would have no chance of competing.

Fang Yun carefully looked at his five teammates and realized that they didn't have much confidence left. They had already given their all.

"We had previously decided on the poems. We are not allowed to write about emotions, ancient figures, or mention weapons or boats. It seems like we have cut off the path of the nation's poems. Without those elements, it is impossible to represent the nation. In order to win against them, we must write war poems related to sailing to accelerate the dragon boat. As long as we don't mention boats or ships, we can gain more vitality and ultimately overpower the opponent!"

Fang Yun pondered hard, but suddenly there was a loud rumbling in the sky, and the surrounding vitality gently fluctuated. The five dragon boats automatically sailed forward.

The second dragon boat where Fang Yun was located took the lead and rushed to the front, while the first dragon boat fell two zhang behind. The other three dragon boats were ten zhang away and had no chance of catching up.

The crowd on both sides of the river burst into cheers, constantly cheering for the second dragon boat.

"Ying ying! Ying ying!" Nunu cheered loudly, waving her claws to support Fang Yun.

Yang Yuhuan nervously clutched her handkerchief.

Zhao Zhuzhen widened his eyes, waiting quietly for the situation to unfold.

A green light enveloped the five dragon boats, allowing them to speed across the river at a speed several times faster than ordinary dragon boats, leaving behind long trails of water, startling the fish in the river.

The drummers on the five dragon boats were beating the drums desperately, echoing the cheers of the people on both sides.

The boats were moving fast, but the people on them were unaffected. Everyone was quickly writing their second poem, competing for the final vitality of heaven and earth.

As Shi Dehong stopped writing, a foot and two inches of literary talent emerged from his paper. Although it was far from the one foot and nine inches before, it was enough to make many people admire him and secretly praise him as a worthy disciple of the Poet Lord.

The literary talent of the first dragon boat immediately soared to six feet and nine inches, a full foot higher than the second dragon boat.

Suddenly, the first dragon boat, accompanied by a loud sound of water splitting, accelerated and almost instantly surpassed the second dragon boat!

The people on the second dragon boat intensified their writing. Qian, the Presented Scholar, quickly finished, but his poem this time was only three inches long. He sighed lightly, his eyes dim. If he had a little more time, he was confident he could write a better poem, but now he couldn't.

Then, Yan Yukong finished writing a county-level poem, and the total literary talent of the first dragon boat soared to eight feet and seven inches.

The cheers from both sides of the river for the second dragon boat weakened. With only two people from the Qing Kingdom, they had achieved such high literary talent. The consequences would be unimaginable if the other four completed their poems.

In all the previous Dragon Boat Literary Events in the Jing Kingdom, no dragon boat had ever achieved a literary talent exceeding ten feet.

The poems of the other four people on the first dragon boat were completed one after another, and they all performed normally.

On the dragon boat of the Qing Kingdom, a column of light with a literary talent of eleven feet and seven inches stood tall!

The first dragon boat raced towards the finish line at an incredible speed, leaving the second dragon boat, where Fang Yun was, far behind.

Although there were tens of thousands of people on both sides of the Yudai River, no one shouted at this moment.

The sound of the drums on the dragon boat seemed to be the only sound in the world, hollow and chilling.

Many people from the Jing Kingdom showed a look of despair. The gap between the literary talents of the two nations was too great. Several young children even had tears in their eyes and could cry at any moment.

"Ying ying! Ying ying!"

Only Nunu had full confidence in cheering for Fang Yun.

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

"Great!" Tong Li, standing on the south bank under the dragon head bridge, couldn't help but shout. He was overjoyed because now he wouldn't have to give up the sacred page and kneel down. As long as Fang Yun left Yuhai City, he would definitely become a talented scholar.

Suddenly, a huge fist swung towards him.

"I'll kill you, Qing Kingdom scum!" The big man said as he threw a punch, and the people around followed suit, punching and kicking Tong Li.

"I was wrong! I mistook the boat! I'm not from the Qing Kingdom! I'm a Child Scholar! My grandfather is a Child Official!" Tong Li shouted loudly, and the other Child Scholars dared not hit him and could only help him block the attacks and explain.

Upon hearing Tong Li's Yuhai City accent, the people immediately realized that he was telling the truth and dispersed in a commotion.

Tong Li stood up with a swollen face and blood flowing from his nose. His friend immediately tore off his clothes to stop the bleeding.

Tong Li cautiously looked around and muttered to himself, "Fang Yun, you're finished! Once you leave Yuhai City, you're as good as dead! I will hold you responsible for this beating!"

After speaking, Tong Li looked at the lagging second dragon boat.

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

The officials from the Jing Kingdom upstairs sighed softly. This was the Dragon Boat Literary Event. One person's power could never reverse the situation. Coupled with various restrictions, even the Four Great Talents could lose here.

Qian, the Presented Scholar, looked at the first dragon boat, which was speeding like a hurricane, and his eyes became moist. He never expected that after working so hard, he would still lose. The Jing Kingdom would once again bear the stigma of eighteen consecutive defeats.

"No, we still have Fang Yun! We still have Fang Shuangjia!" Qian, the Presented Scholar, suddenly turned his head to look at Fang Yun and shouted amidst the drumming, "Fang Yun, we're counting on you! We're counting on you!"

Fang Yun glanced at Qian, the Presented Scholar, nodded heavily, and his heart surged with excitement.

Although they were not allowed to mention weapons or boats in their poems, it didn't mean they couldn't write about boats!

Fang Yun took a deep breath and wrote with the style of Liu Kai, stroke by stroke.

"Red flags held high, flying out from the deep Yangliu River. Huh? The word 'flying' is used well, but it's just used well. He is writing about the Dragon Boat Race. Could it be that he won't use the words 'boat' or 'ship'?"

Feng Zimo couldn't help but comment.

Feng Zimo was about to recite the second line of Fang Yun's poem when a loud and urgent thunderous sound came from Fang Yun's paper.

All six people on the first dragon boat were having a good time, but when this thunderous sound came out, they all froze. Only Yan Yukong suddenly turned his head and stared at Fang Yun.

This thunderous sound even drowned out the drums of the five dragon boats, and everyone on both sides of the river could hear it clearly. Many people looked at Fang Yun in confusion, not understanding what had happened, but some immediately realized.

"The sound of writing?"

"No, it's not complete yet. It can only be considered as the 'first cry of the pen,' barely entering the first realm of calligraphy."

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

"The Qing Kingdom will win!"

Someone shouted, and the previously silent crowd on both sides of the river immediately erupted in a tsunami-like cheer.

"The Qing Kingdom will win!"

Feng Zimo's face suddenly turned red. Using his literary talent as a guide, he sent his voice into the vitality of heaven and earth, ensuring that everyone within a dozen li could hear him.

"Red flags held high, flying out from the deep Yangliu River. Drums strike like spring thunder, breaking through the distant misty waves."

As soon as Feng Zimo finished speaking, the paper in front of Fang Yun burned, forming a power far stronger than ordinary poems, enveloping Fang Yun's dragon boat in a radiant light.

The vitality of heaven and earth in the entire Dragon Boat Race river suddenly trembled heavily, and the river water was pressed down by an invisible force, sinking one foot deeper. The speed of the other four dragon boats slowed down, and the green light on the surface of the four dragon boats visibly decreased, while the green light on the second dragon boat rapidly increased.

"It's indeed a war poem. Only war poems can plunder the vitality of heaven and earth from other dragon boats in the Dragon Boat Literary Event."

"It's a fast-paced poem, or more accurately, a wind-stirring poem. It accelerates the warship, but unfortunately, it's not a masterpiece."

"How could he possibly create a masterpiece? You're thinking too much."

Tong Li, who was just jubilant, turned pale.

"It's over, it's over." Tong Li said and wanted to escape.

A young man in civilian clothes, a Child Scholar, blocked his way, drew a precious sword from his waist with his right hand, and said, "Our young master asked me to keep an eye on you."

Tong Li knew that the other party was a guard from the imperial palace and dared not move, muttering to himself, "It's really over..."