Heaven’s Power Unleashed (You Know What to Ask For!)

A crisp, resounding chime rang out, lingering in the faint light of dawn. Then, three drumbeats followed—thud, thud, thud—each one reverberating in the hearts of all present.

Atop the reviewing platform above the drill ground stood more than a dozen people in a neat line. Each was an official of Linxi County, but the two in the center, clad in white robes trimmed with broad black borders and wearing high ceremonial caps, attracted the most attention. These were the scholars of the Clear Mind Society, acting as supervisors for this county examination.

The Clear Mind Society’s headquarters lay on the Xuanji Continent. It was an organization established by the four great academies of the Nine Heavens Xuanji specifically to oversee the grand examinations. Every year, the local officials administered the exams, but the Clear Mind Society dispatched special supervisors to ensure there was no favoritism or fraud. Should a candidate find the process unfair, they could appeal to the Society, which would then arbitrate. If their claim proved valid, the candidate would be allowed a retest or even a pass, depending on the Society’s judgment. But if the appeal was found to be slanderous, the candidate would be permanently barred from all future examinations.

Because of this last clause, very few dared to appeal, rendering this function of the Society almost a mere formality.

The white glow on the horizon grew brighter. Again came three drumbeats—thud, thud, thud!

After nine such drumbeats, one scholar stepped forward, clasped his hands, and called out to the heavens: “Receive the power of the heavens, sun and moon about to rise!”

All the candidates looked up. Following those eight words, a shadow appeared in the sky above the county office. In the pale light, it gradually became distinct until it was clear—a colossal tree, vast and majestic, reaching from the abyss to the vault of the sky!

The World-Connecting Tree’s roots plunged to the Nine Abysses, its crown soared to the Nine Skies. The portion in between supported the entirety of the Nine Heavens Xuanji Continent. From its aerial roots, branches descended—these became the Clear Mind Trees, the source of martial cultivation.

The World-Connecting Tree was the origin of all clear mind, the root of every martial practitioner.

At that moment, everyone gazed up in awe, spirits stirred to reverence and even breathless wonder. For Jiang Feng, the sensation was particularly intense; as he stared at the World-Connecting Tree, he felt as though he were gazing upon his true homeland.

The shadow of the World-Connecting Tree grew ever clearer, until it seemed a real tree stood before them.

Presently, a beam of golden light appeared among the branches, shooting down to envelop the entire drill ground. A mighty, luminous force descended from the heavens, wrapping everyone within its embrace.

Jiang Feng trembled. A warmth—gentle, benevolent—suddenly flooded his soul and fused with him completely. Under this will, his Heavenly Heart Seed opened fully, the vortex within emerging, threads of golden light flickering inside. The immense clear force poured into the vortex, surging through him. The power within the first origin branch thickened and surged onward to the second.

It was as if Jiang Feng’s mind had ignited in a sudden roar. In that brief instant, the clear force in his second origin branch surged forward, nearly reaching the threshold of the first aperture!

But this mighty force lasted only a short time, vanishing swiftly.

Jiang Feng turned, startled, to look around. All the other candidates wore looks of blissful enjoyment, which surprised him even more.

Was it like this for everyone? Did a single offering to the heavens grant such a surge in strength, almost enough to raise a level?

He quickly realized this was not the case. For the others, the ritual was like a bath in clear force—some improvement, but slight. Only for him did vast streams of clear force pour in, nearly propelling him up an entire level!

After all, he had just entered this realm, and in his second origin branch, the clear force was but a thin layer!

The scholar raised his hands high and called out, “Request the Heavenly Seal!”

At entry, Jiang Feng had already gripped his Heavenly Illumination Token. Now, it began to warm in his palm. Unbidden, he released it, and the token shone with a faint golden light, floating up into the air.

Suddenly, the golden light from the tree’s shadow split into countless rays, forming pillars of light that connected with the token. Before the token, a strange symbol appeared, lingering in the air for several breaths before imprinting itself into each candidate’s brow.

Next, beams of light shot back from each candidate’s brow, weaving together above the reviewing platform to form a vast golden wall—blank and empty.

The scholar called out, “Candidates, state your names!”

His gaze swept to the first in line at the far left. That person instinctively called out his name. The moment he spoke, the golden wall displayed that very name.

One by one, candidates declared their names, each appearing above. In the end, all one hundred and three names were listed, each with a blank space beside it, as though something awaited its place.

After the roll call, the scholar announced, “This is the World-Connecting County List. Scores for the three examinations—Heaven, Earth, and Man—will appear here for ranking. Only the top thirty will pass the county exam! The List is absolutely impartial; conduct yourselves with utmost care and strive for the best result!”

Turning, he bowed deeply toward the tree’s shadow. “With the power of heaven, let the sun and moon emerge!”

The tree’s shadow trembled and gradually faded. As it vanished, a sun suddenly leapt from the horizon, flooding the earth with light. It was as if the World-Connecting Tree had held it back until now!

Brilliance filled the world. The scholar proclaimed, “The county examination begins—open the Heaven Test hall!”

To the left, a great door slowly swung open, revealing a spacious hall. From the ceiling hung a bronze tree with five branches, each bearing seven leaves.

All could see at a glance: this bronze tree was a representation of the origin branches.

For this round, each candidate would place their hand upon the bronze tree and channel their full clear force. The tree would reveal their level and measure the concentration of their force.

The scholar nodded to the first candidate, who, a bit nervous, straightened his clothes and strode in.

He placed his hand upon the trunk. Immediately, his body began to glow. The light seemed to flow from his hand into the bronze tree. The lowest branch lit up, leaves shining one by one, until the first branch was fully aglow and two leaves on the second branch shone as well.

One Chain, Two Apertures—everyone instantly recognized his level.

The light ceased, paused for two breaths, then dimmed and brightened twice in succession before fading away.

Now, beside his name on the List, a number appeared: twenty-four. For the Heaven Test, he had scored twenty-four points.

The offering to heaven was over; the Heaven Test began, and the atmosphere relaxed.

Ping Luanshan, studying the scoreboard, muttered quietly, “One Chain, Two Apertures, twelve points each, doubled for two flares?”

Hong Cheng nodded. “Correct. Length for level, flares for force intensity. It’s always been tested this way, but the scoring wasn’t so explicit before.”

Ping Luanshan said, “So force intensity is more important than level? But you can’t really train that directly…”

Suddenly, a booming voice sounded behind them. “Heaven, Earth, and Man tests—after all three, only the top ten can enter the prefectural exam. That means, out of ten, only one will go to Taicang City for the Yushui Prefecture exam!”

A group from the Ancient Vine Martial Hall strode over, the leader loudly lecturing those behind. “Tell me, how many did we bring from Ancient Vine today?!”

“Ten!”

“How many of us are going to Taicang City?”

“Ten!”

“Good! That’s the spirit of a true martial artist—strive for victory and leave not a single chance for your rivals! Forget those from Distant Mountain or Near Water—if they failed before, they’ll fail again this year, mark my words!”

Jiang Feng looked up, meeting the leader’s gaze.

The man appeared to be in his forties or fifties, with a face like bristling steel thorns and strikingly ugly features. As Jiang Feng’s eyes narrowed, the man’s form changed in his vision: he was enveloped in golden light, a vortex at his heart giving rise to origin branches. Two branches, one aperture—a Heaven Bright realm martial artist.

This was Jiang Feng’s new ability upon advancing: he alone could do this, not even Ping Luanshan. With a shift of his vision, he could see the level of anyone one realm above his own. Now at the Dawn Chain realm, he could see those at Heaven Bright.

He had once glimpsed Hua Su’s level, but saw only chaos within, and nearly got noticed for his trouble. From this, Jiang Feng realized not only how much stronger Hua Su was, but that this ability must never be carelessly used on the powerful.

The Heaven Bright martial artist’s sleeve bore faint water patterns—Jiang Feng understood at once: this must be the Ancient Vine instructor, a disciple of the Hidden Current Sect, likely assigned to Water Curtain Town to recruit local talent.

The instructor sized up Jiang Feng and Ping Luanshan. “You two are the new ones from Distant Mountain? Quite young. To have reached the Dawn Chain at your age is impressive! How about joining Ancient Vine? I guarantee you’ll pass the county exam!”

His voice was loud and utterly unrestrained. Jiang Feng smiled. “But we’re aiming for the prefecture exam, aren’t we? Didn’t you just say all ten of your people are going to Taicang City? If we join you, what then—will you conjure up two extra spots for us?”

The grand examination was protected by the power of the heavens; quotas could be contested, but their number was fixed.

The instructor’s face darkened. “So young and already so sharp-tongued!”

With that, he swung a heavy palm toward Jiang Feng’s face!

Jiang Feng dodged, voice steady. “Sir, this is an official examination site. Please restrain yourself.”

A guard banged his spear’s butt on the ground. “No disturbances in the exam grounds!”

The instructor scowled, but dared not act out at such a crucial moment. He withdrew his hand and pointed at Jiang Feng. “Remember this one! If you can’t shove him out of the running later, you’ll all be crawling home to Water Curtain Town!”

“Yes, sir!” All the Ancient Vine candidates replied in unison, their eyes on Jiang Feng full of ill intent.

Jiang Feng smiled suddenly and turned. “Why wait for the Man Test?” He jerked his chin. “The Heaven Test is up next—let’s settle it by scores, shall we?”