July 6th, at night.

In the end, the two little demons dared not linger outside the Imperial Examination Hall.

One reason was the fear of the foreboding Literary Qi emanating from the front, and the other was the worry that if their demonic aura leaked, it might attract some unresistible enemy, which would be disastrous.

Wei Yuan led Ah Shi back to the south of the city using earth escape.

It was strange; once out of the influence range of the Imperial Examination Hall, Ah Shi felt an inexplicable sense of relief when he looked back towards the north.

The little mouse let out a long breath and said, "Hedgehog, we can't really help the scholar much; worrying for nothing only attracts suspicion.

Why don't I summon some clever rats to keep an eye on the Imperial Examination Hall from afar?"

As a bloodline spirit mouse among the mouse demons, Ah Shi naturally possessed the ability to communicate with the rat pack.

However, due to Master Jiu's advice, Ah Shi had never used this ability.

Master Jiu said, "The rats outside have their own survival rules, regardless of prosperity or decline, it has nothing to do with us.

But if you intentionally provoke certain groups, you might inadvertently enlighten them.

When wild rats gain widespread intellect, it might not be a good thing."

Ah Shi always remembered Master Jiu's teachings, but at this moment, he was really worried about Chen Xu, and couldn't help but break the rules.

He explained the reason to Wei Yuan.

After pondering for a moment, Wei Yuan said: "Ah Shi, you shouldn't command the rat pack on a large scale; just choose a dozen or so strong ones from the ordinary rats.

Spread a few around the east, north, west, and south of the city, including the inner and outer rivers of Yuan Cang River, and have them watch.

You don't have to do anything, but since you're feeling uneasy, let's understand more about the city's movements.

The more information we get, the more likely we are to gain something."

Upon hearing this, Ah Shi's eyes lit up.

As he nodded in agreement, Wei Yuan added: "Furthermore, inside and outside the city, there are rat packs everywhere.

Since you have the ability to communicate with them, even if you don't direct them to do anything, you can directly gather intelligence from them.

By obtaining general information from certain rat leaders, it's not considered intentional provocation or command.

Think about it; it shouldn't easily lead to enlightening the whole rat pack, isn't that wonderful?"

With these words, Ah Shi felt as if he had been struck by a bolt of lightning, and his mind suddenly became clear.

His already wide-open eyes widened again, staring at Wei Yuan with a strange gaze.

Wei Yuan felt a bit uneasy under his gaze, before the little mouse grudgingly muttered:

"Hedgehog, sometimes you are indeed a tiny bit smarter than me."

Wei Yuan, caught off guard by this sudden praise, had his soft quills instantly stand up.

The little mouse, tilted its head, suddenly laughed: "Hedgehog, you don't take praise well! Squeak, squeak…"

Before its laughter died down, it flipped over and darted from the rooftop to the corner of the wall.

Hey, in no time, it was gone.

Night enveloped the sky; lights flickered everywhere in Pingyang City.

The prosperity of the mortal world never ceased, be it greed, anger, ignorance, or hesitation and joy.

In the four major gambling houses, there was noise and boiling heat throughout the night.

The red dust was colorful, everything seemed as usual.

Of course, due to the ongoing provincial examination, more topics related to it inevitably arose throughout the city.

The odds of Chen Xu becoming the Top Scholar lowered once again.

All because, on July 3rd, a wisp of cyan smoke had risen in the Imperial Examination Hall.

People couldn't help but excitedly speculate: "Cyan smoke on paper, this must mean someone in the Imperial Examination Hall has written a Cyan Smoke Poem!

This person must be Chen Xu, no doubt about it."

Of course, there were skeptics; after all, although Chen Xu had written the most Cyan Smoke Poems, who could be certain that they were all penned by him?

What if someone else wrote them?

But such skepticism was relatively weak, so the calls for Chen Xu to become Top Scholar grew louder, and the odds lower.

At this moment, under the seemingly normal surface of the world, there were evident undercurrents surging.

By contrast, the Imperial Examination Hall, at the center of countless topics, seemed isolated from the world.

The dim blue sky loomed like a giant dome, enveloping the hall.

The Imperial Examination Hall was quiet; the world dim and dark, with only a few dim yellow wind lanterns swaying under the eaves of each exam booth, bringing with them faint sobbing sounds.

Chen Xu slept in his clothes, keeping his breath closed.

The mysterious Golden Core lay dormant in his Dantian, invisibly lending him strong confidence.

Suddenly, a distant, muffled "plop" sound was heard.

Followed by the sound of something burning.

Moments later, a gusting wind sound echoed.

Then came the smell of burning from all directions.

That burning smell spread quickly in the dim darkness, seemingly engulfing the entire exam hall in moments.

Finally, came the terrifying cries: "Something's wrong, there's a fire!"

"The wind lantern has fallen... there's a fire!"

"Quick, put out the fire!"

"Help me! Ah—"

Finally, there was a heart-wrenching scream.

The entire examination hall, all examinees were awakened.

Then, the examinees experienced the most breathtaking night in the examination hall.

Actually, every night in the Imperial Examination Hall could be described as breathtaking.

Only the degree of panic varied, in length and weight.

A fire was usually the most severe among various horrors.

The examinees had been through six days and five nights of exams, their nerves were taut, almost at the limit.

When another fire struck, quite a few people's taut nerves suddenly snapped, with a loud bang.

That night, besides the examinee shouting for help, all sorts of sounds were heard, crying, laughing, or sobbing and delirious.

"A fire? Hahaha, yes, a fire is certainly due... I just dreamt of a fire.

Oh, could it be my dream has become reality?"

"I started this fire, yes, it was me! Please, Grandmaster, swiftly arrest this student. I am willing to confess, I confess... sob sob sob..."

"Help! Help! I can still write, I haven't finished yet! Don't collect the papers, I haven't finished yet...

It was you, yes, you set fire to burn my answer sheets.

Demon, hurry up and return my papers! Ah!"

Various delirious voices, along with the firelight, ignited the entire Imperial Examination Hall.

Seeing this, chaos seemed inevitable within the exam hall.

Perhaps, the worst exam hall disaster in the history of the Great Li Dynasty was about to occur, placing all examiners and students on the pillar of shame in the history of imperial examinations.

Just then, a bell sound suddenly rang.

Dong—

The tranquil bell sound gradually echoed throughout the Imperial Examination Hall.

This was the sound of the Heaven-Equalizing Bell.

With the Divine Artifact's sound, all confusion vanished.

At this moment, all chaotic noises, including the previously frantic firelight, instantly quieted and dissipated.

What seemed an unmanageable chaos was swiftly calmed by the sound of the Heaven-Equalizing Bell.

The power of the Divine Artifact brought it to an end.

In East Literature Field, within booth number 36, Chen Xu frowned slightly, sensing a peculiar unease.

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