Chapter 1118: Seeking Help Off-Site

The examiner's expression changed dramatically, no longer as calm and composed as before.

Many of the examinees were cultivators. To prevent cheating, the Imperial Examination Hall had set up a spirit-suppressing array, rendering all cultivators' techniques useless. But what array could withstand the descent of a heavenly tribulation?

"You, you need to leave quickly!"

"It's too late," Mang Gu said, cold sweat pouring down his face. He looked up at the sky. In a flash, winds swirled, lightning cracked, and thunder roared as the heavenly tribulation locked onto him!

"Examinees, evacuate the hall immediately!" the examiner shouted. Since Mang Gu couldn't leave, they had to get the other examinees out quickly. This was no laughing matter; if the tribulation truly struck, very few present would survive.

The examinees had never witnessed such a spectacle. This was a heavenly tribulation for advancing from the Nascent Soul stage to the Void Refinement stage. It was debatable whether their city even had Nascent Soul cultivators, let alone seeing a heavenly tribulation firsthand. The examinees scrambled to evacuate the hall, leaving only Mang Gu behind.

Mang Gu's face was ashen as he gazed at the rolling thunderclouds.

"This is bad," he thought. The more people present during a heavenly tribulation, the stronger its power. Just now, the tribulation had not only locked onto him but also the tens of thousands of examinees, causing its might to skyrocket, far exceeding his capabilities!

He was only at the Nascent Soul stage; even if he reached the Integration stage, he wouldn't be able to withstand this.

Furthermore, it was too late for the examinees to escape. The heavenly tribulation had deemed them all factors influencing the tribulation, meaning they would all be struck by lightning! "This certainly won't work!"

Mang Gu gritted his teeth, summoned his Nascent Spirit, and pressed his palms together, chanting, "May the immortals bless us! I, Mang Gu, respectfully welcome the most powerful ancestor of the Barbarian Race!" His Nascent Spirit had the ability to summon the power of Barbarian ancestors still lingering in the world.

Unlike his previous summoning of a Barbarian ancestor, where he called upon the strongest ancient Barbarian in the Nascent Soul stage, this time he disregarded cultivation realms and summoned the single most powerful warrior among all ancient Barbarians!

*Crack!* The majestic heavenly thunder descended, and the examinees, no longer able to control their fear, clutched their heads and crouched down.

A tall, slender figure tore through the void and stepped out, walking on air. Facing the ferociously attacking lightning tribulation, a slight smirk played on his lips. With a dismissive wave of his hand, he repelled the bolts.

"He repelled the lightning tribulation with a single strike! Who is that mighty figure?!"

"I don't recognize him."

"He just materialized out of thin air! What level of cultivation does one need to achieve that?"

Examinees and examiners buzzed with discussion, but none could identify the figure or match him to any known supreme expert.

Even the powerful cultivators within the Imperial City noticed the commotion at the examination hall. They watched as, amidst a world cloaked in darkness, that sole slender white figure single-handedly faced the lightning tribulation, standing unyielding and inspiring awe.

The tall, slender figure seemed like an immortal king seated high above the nine heavens, observing humanity with indifference, completely oblivious to the examinees' chatter.

Lu Yang inwardly gloated. This was truly the perfect place to make an appearance. "Shout louder, even louder!" he thought. "Isn't this the whole point of cultivation? If I don't show off my skills in front of a crowd, haven't I cultivated for nothing?"

Originally, he had just arrived in the Buddhist Kingdom and was in the process of condensing his immortal body when he felt someone calling him, much like Mang Gu's previous summons.

The last time Mang Gu called him, Lu Yang was caught off guard and simply pulled through. Now that he was an immortal, of course, he couldn't be dragged away so easily.

Nevertheless, there had to be a reason for Mang Gu's summons. Since Lu Yang's true body couldn't leave the Buddhist Kingdom, he could only dispatch a portion of his power to assist Mang Gu and investigate. As soon as he arrived, he encountered the heavenly tribulation.

Although the Lu Yang who arrived in the Imperial City was merely a clone, he was more than capable of handling the heavenly tribulation, able to shatter it with a mere lift of his hand.

Mang Gu was also stunned. Did his ancestors truly include such a formidable being?

"Junior Brother Mang, it's me," Lu Yang transmitted to him. Unsure of the situation, he had already disguised himself before arriving.

"Brother Lu?!" Mang Gu's mouth fell open in disbelief. Had Lu Yang already become the strongest being in their Barbarian Race?

*Boom!*

The second lightning tribulation struck in quick succession, giving Lu Yang no time to catch his breath.

Lu Yang flew above the Imperial City, extending a colossal finger from his Palm-sized Buddhist Kingdom. The finger was so immense it could easily cover ten examination halls.

Lu Yang's finger pierced the heavens, letting the lightning tribulation strike it directly. As it did so, he chatted with Mang Gu to understand the full story.

"So, you accidentally broke through your cultivation realm while taking the imperial exam," Lu Yang chuckled. He found it amusing; countless Nascent Soul cultivators spent their entire lives seeking a breakthrough, yet Mang Gu was actually trying to suppress his. Unfortunately, he couldn't.

"The array in the examination hall suppressed the spiritual energy in my body, which ironically prevented me from suppressing my cultivation realm," Mang Gu lamented. He had originally intended to break through his realm as a celebratory act *after* passing the exam.

"Alright, alright. Since this was meant to be your heavenly tribulation, you'll have to undergo it eventually," Lu Yang said. He blocked most of the lightning tribulation, allowing only a small portion to strike Mang Gu.

Being struck by lightning is a necessary part of breaking through a cultivation realm; it's a body-tempering process that cannot be skipped.

Mang Gu roared, activating his ancient Barbarian bloodline. The lightning tribulation struck him, tearing his skin and flesh, yet he didn't utter a sound of pain, upholding the revered name of the ancient Barbarian Race.

Immortal Fairy floated out from the mental space. Both "Little Yang" and "Little Mang" were undergoing lightning tribulations, while she was the one with nothing to do.

"Let this immortal see what kind of content this imperial examination tests," she mused.

"The Way of Great Learning lies in illuminating illustrious virtue, in loving the people, and in resting in the highest good. Discuss — what is Great Learning?"

"Should the Prime Minister invite wise talents from all four directions to advise him, and should he meet with guests in his private residence for discussions?"

"What do all these questions even mean?"

Immortal Fairy scratched her head, finding the questions incomprehensible, even harder to grasp than what "Little Yang" usually said. If her Great Soybean Dynasty were to hold imperial examinations, they certainly wouldn't pose such questions.

"Little Yang would definitely know..."

Immortal Fairy, considering asking for help despite herself, looked up to see Lu Yang still performing quite flashy moves to resist the lightning tribulation. He was drawing cheers from the crowd below and was clearly very popular. At the same time, Lu Yang was also controlling the tribulation bolts striking Mang Gu, leaving him unable to spare any attention.

"Never mind, I'll find someone else."

Clutching the examination paper, Immortal Fairy eagerly went to find Jiang Ping'an, who was tending to his crops in the forbidden grounds of the imperial palace.

"Hey, you're the Immortal of the Jiang family, aren't you?"

Jiang Ping'an, who was in the middle of farming, felt his hand tremble, nearly dropping his hoe. *What the hell?* he thought. Someone had actually approached him without a sound.

He turned around and saw a beautiful female ghost.

"You're the Ancient Immortal Fairy?" Jiang Ping'an had no trouble guessing her identity.

"Fellow Daoist Ping'an, although you are one of my Great Soybean Dynasty's people, you are still a commoner, without an official position."

"To become an official of my Great Soybean Dynasty, your talent must be exceptional."

Immortal Fairy pulled out the imperial examination paper. "If you can answer these questions correctly, you may choose any official position in this dynasty."

Jiang Ping'an took the paper and scratched his head in frustration. He wasn't good at these kinds of things.

If he had been able to pass the imperial examinations back then, he wouldn't have needed to rebel at the end of the Great Yu Dynasty.

"Wait a moment, I'll ask someone."

Jiang Ping'an and Immortal Fairy found Emperor Xia in the Daming Palace, where he was reviewing memorials.

"Take a look at these questions. Do you know the answers?"

Emperor Xia looked up at his ancestor and the ancient immortal, then down at the examination paper, remaining silent for a long time.

*Aren't these the imperial examination questions I wrote?*