Once the examination concluded, all the candidates emerged from the examination hall, every one of them thoroughly disoriented.

Three days of testing had, indeed, proven a considerable trial for them.

Still, compared to the old system, where the provincial examination required three separate sessions, each lasting three days, this was already a considerable improvement.

Within the examination hall, every candidate's papers were sealed and sent to the Ministry of Rites.

Under the Zhou Kingdom's laws, for these ten days, the Ministry of Rites would bar entry to all unrelated persons, until every examination paper had been fully graded.

In the blink of an eye, ten days passed, and the newly appointed Minister of Rites arrived at the imperial study, carrying a list of names along with five examination papers.

"Your Majesty, this is the list of successful candidates from this examination, along with the five papers we believe rank among the top. Please review them, and determine who shall be named the top scholar." Minister of Rites Yu Houwu said respectfully.

Xiao Mo nodded, “Bring them forward."

"Yes."

Yu Houwu stepped forward, and Wei Xun, too, came forward, taking the list and the five papers, presenting them to Xiao Mo.

As for the list of successful candidates, Xiao Mo merely glanced over it briefly, noting each candidate's place of origin, enough to have a general sense of things.

Setting the list aside, Xiao Mo picked up the five papers before him, skipping directly past the sections on the Four Books and Five Classics and the composition of poetry, focusing carefully instead on the policy essay section.

The policy essay portion of the examination carried nearly seventy percent of the total weight, and several of its questions, such as "On the Relationship Between Dynasties and Sects," "On the Nationalization of Land," and "On Integrity Versus Ability," had all been set by Xiao Mo himself, addressing precisely the issues the Zhou Kingdom most urgently needed to resolve.

Reviewing these candidates' papers, Xiao Mo felt they were indeed quite good, some genuinely impressive, though not quite to the point of utterly captivating him but when Xiao Mo opened the final paper, his eyes suddenly lit up.

Xiao Mo read through this particular paper twice in succession, feeling that this candidate's talent was truly remarkable.

Looking at the signature beside the paper, he saw the name "Jin Yuan" written there.

"This Jin Yuan from Liuye Prefecture is rather interesting." Xiao Mo said with a smile, asking Yu Houwu, "I intend to name Jin Yuan as the top scholar. What do you and the others think?"

"Reporting to Your Majesty, this humble official and the others also felt Jin Yuan's essay was truly exceptional." Yu Houwu agreed wholeheartedly. "This man possesses sharp wit and profound learning, and his insights are remarkably keen besides. He was already the top-ranked candidate in Liuye Prefecture's provincial examination. Naming him as the top scholar here would be entirely fitting."

"Mm, then it's settled. As for the ranking of the other four, I'll leave that to your judgment." Xiao Mo said.

"Yes!"

Once the top scholar had been decided, Yu Houwu gathered up the list and the papers, preparing to arrange for the results to be posted.

"You may withdraw as well. I'll rest for a while."

Xiao Mo rubbed at his brow, speaking to Wei Xun.

"Yes, Your Majesty. I hope Your Majesty will take care of your health."

Wei Xun glanced at his emperor with some concern.

These past days, His Majesty had truly labored over state affairs day and night, hardly resting at all.

He felt his own emperor had grown considerably more haggard but Wei Xun had already advised him several times, to no avail, and could only let the matter drop.

"I understand. Go on, then." Xiao Mo waved a hand.

Once Wei Xun had left, Xiao Mo drew a deep breath, settling his own thoughts.

In truth, these past days, Xiao Mo's weariness had not come from the burden of state affairs at all.

Quite the opposite.

Ever since Xiao Mo had taken charge of the court, the Zhou Kingdom had flourished, its fortune of mountains and rivers growing ever richer, and because Xiao Mo possessed the Hundun Emperor's bones, this abundant fortune, far from hindering his cultivation, actually enhanced it further.

The higher Xiao Mo's cultivation grew, the more vigorous his energy naturally became.

This formed a most beneficial cycle.

But... as his cultivation level rose, and the strength of his soul gradually increased along with it, the memories held within the Book of a Hundred Lives gradually began to unlock, with fragments of his past life experiences within the Book occasionally surfacing in Xiao Mo's mind.

Processing these memories took a considerable toll on Xiao Mo's spirit.

This left Xiao Mo feeling rather fatigued.

Xiao Mo also came to understand better why the Book of a Hundred Lives sealed away his memories in the first place, otherwise, having lived through so many lives, without sufficient strength of soul to bear it all, he might well have gone mad by now.

"Come to think of it, among all these memories from the Book of a Hundred Lives, I still remember my first life most clearly."

Xiao Mo murmured to himself, his tone carrying a note of reflection.

The memories held within the Book of a Hundred Lives unlocked gradually, from earliest to latest, and for the moment, Xiao Mo remembered his first life most clearly, while the second and third lives remained somewhat hazier.

"Your Majesty... Commander Zeng has arrived."

Just as Xiao Mo lay reclined upon the couch, about to close his eyes for a brief rest, a maid's voice sounded beyond the imperial study.

"Have Commander Zeng come in." Xiao Mo said.

"Yes." The maid opened the door, and Zeng Qiang strode in, cupping his hands in salute. "This subject pays his respects to Your Majesty!"

"No need for such formalities." Xiao Mo took a sip of tea, getting straight to the point. "Regarding the matter of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect, how has the investigation progressed?"

During this period, Xiao Mo had had Wei Xun investigate matters concerning the Four Seas, largely on a passing whim but having Zeng Qiang investigate the Ten Thousand Swords Sect was, in truth, a matter of genuine importance to the Zhou Kingdom itself.

After all, the Zhou Kingdom was currently a vassal state of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect, and to a considerable degree, needed to defer to the sect's wishes and so Xiao Mo needed a thorough understanding of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect, particularly its sect master.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, this is everything this subject has gathered regarding the Ten Thousand Swords Sect. Please review it, Your Majesty."

Zeng Qiang handed over a thick file.

Xiao Mo opened it, and found within it a record of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect's scale and its history of development.

At first, the Ten Thousand Swords Sect had been nothing more than an ordinary Jade Simplicity realm sect but one day, a great cultivator had destroyed that sect, and in the end, established the Ten Thousand Swords Sect in its place.

Never mind the sect's numerous Upper Three Realms elders.

No small number of cultivators, having achieved mastery within the Ten Thousand Swords Sect, had gone on to leave the sect and establish their own schools, yet fundamentally retained a sense of belonging to the Ten Thousand Swords Sect.

These offshoot sects, having branched out over the years, formed the Ten Thousand Swords Sect's broader network of connections.

Over all these years, the Ten Thousand Swords Sect had maintained strict discipline and immense power, undoubtedly the foremost sword sect throughout the world.

Xiao Mo continued reviewing the Ten Thousand Swords Sect's structure, its sect rules, and other such matters.

Everything pointed to the Ten Thousand Swords Sect's strict, impartial enforcement of its laws, a truly legitimate and upright major sect but Xiao Mo noticed one thing: the file made no mention of who, exactly, the Ten Thousand Swords Sect's master was.

"What's this about?" Xiao Mo asked Zeng Qiang. "You couldn't even determine the Ten Thousand Swords Sect master's name?"

"Reporting to Your Majesty."

Zeng Qiang bowed.

"The current Ten Thousand Swords Sect master is, in truth, only an acting sect master. In reality, the true foundation of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect rests with an ancestral elder behind the scenes. It's only that, after all this searching, this subject managed to uncover nothing more than a single name for this ancestral elder, and so did not include it in the file, not wishing to waste Your Majesty's attention on such scant information."

"And what is this Ten Thousand Swords Sect master called?" Xiao Mo asked.

"That ancestral elder is named..."

Zeng Qiang spoke slowly.

"Jiang Qingyi."

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