Chapter 21: Reading Ten Thousand Volumes, Writing with Divine Inspiration

"I've seen Lord Chu!" The officials of Yishui County, led by Chen Jisheng, bowed to Chu Fengge.

Chu Fengge raised his head and casually responded with a faint "Hmm," considering it a gesture of courtesy.

With his cold and arrogant expression, coupled with his stunningly beautiful face, he exuded a sense of loneliness that one would associate with a formidable expert.

"Gu Xu, Ma Qin, are you here?" he asked in a cold tone.

"Present." Gu Xu and Ma Qin stepped forward together.

Chu Fengge casually glanced at the two—a middle-aged man with a world-weary face and a young boy who had just come of age. They seemed unremarkable, and he couldn't fathom why the Head of the Bureau would attach such importance to them.

So, he casually waved his hand, calling the two attendants to his side and instructed, "Xu San, Wang Wu, I have urgent matters to attend to. I leave the remaining assessment to you."

"Shall we proceed as planned?" one of the attendants asked.

"As planned," Chu Fengge replied indifferently.

As he had said before, two low-level ants vying for an insignificant ninth-rank official position were not worth his personal attention.

He would rather spend his time on more meaningful endeavors.

Such as attempting to eliminate several notorious ghosts and monsters, making his name as the "Unparalleled Genius" and the "Number One Sword cultivator" resound throughout the entire Great Qi Dynasty.

With this in mind, Chu Fengge stood with his hands behind his back, casually asking Chen Jisheng, "Do you know the most powerful ghost in the vicinity of Yishui County?"

Chen Jisheng was puzzled, not understanding why Chu Fengge would ask such a question.

But he respectfully answered, "Reporting to Lord Chu, it is the 'Yishui Snow Maiden,' one of the 'Three Fierce Gods of Jiaodong.'"

At the mention of the words "Fierce God," Chu Fengge hesitated for a moment.

Although he had always been arrogant and conceited, he wasn't foolish. He knew that dealing with a fierce god-level evil spirit required the expertise of someone like the Head of the Bureau or the Great Qi Imperial Tutor.

If he were to face it alone, he would undoubtedly be sending himself to his death at the hands of the Snow Maiden.

However, he remained composed and continued, "And where is the second most powerful evil spirit?"

"In the outskirts of Qingzhou Prefecture, there is the Lu Family's Sinister Mansion," Chen Jisheng replied. "No one resides in that mansion, but strange sounds can be heard—classical music during the day and ghostly wails at night. So far, no cultivator sent by the Exorcism Department has returned alive."

Chu Fengge thought to himself, "This doesn't sound as terrifying as a fierce god-level evil spirit. Perhaps I can give it a try. As long as I can solve this major case, I can secure my title as the 'Number One among the Younger Generation.' That Su Xiao from the Sword Pavilion, Zhao Yan from Youzhou, and that smelly girl Shangguan Jin won't be able to catch up to me. Besides, I have the magical treasure given to me by the Head of the Bureau. Even if I can't defeat it, I can still escape."

He chuckled and said, "For nearly ten years, Chu Fengge has been devoted to eliminating demons and upholding justice. There's nothing I fear when it comes to ghosts and monsters. I will do what others dare not. Leave this Lu Family's Sinister Mansion to me!"

"Lord Chu, your righteousness is admirable! I admire you!" Ma Qin immediately flattered.

Then, Chu Fengge looked up at the sky and shouted loudly:

"Sword, come forth!"

A delicately crafted longsword flew over and hovered by his side.

Chu Fengge gracefully leaped onto the flying sword, and with a gust of wind, he disappeared into the horizon in the blink of an eye.

The onlookers gazed at his departure, their hearts filled with envy and longing.

A fourth-stage expert was truly terrifying!

Moreover, this Lord Chu appeared to be no more than twenty years old—achieving the fourth stage at such a young age meant his future was limitless!

Perhaps in a few years, the Great Qi Dynasty would have another top powerhouse, akin to the Emperor, the Imperial Tutor, and the Head of the Bureau.

...

Even though the chief examiner was neglecting his duties, the promotion assessment was still to be carried out as usual.

First, the examination began with testing theoretical knowledge.

Since only two people were participating in the promotion assessment, the arrangements were kept simple, with two desks and chairs placed in the spacious hall, appearing lonely.

All idle personnel, including Chen Jisheng and Shi Xiaohan, were driven out of the hall.

Only Gu Xu, Ma Qin, and a few attendants remained to oversee the examination.

Ma Qin sat in one of the chairs, awkwardly grinding ink while trying to recall his past experiences of dealing with ghosts, his mind a blank slate due to nervousness.

Inadvertently, he couldn't help but turn his head and steal a glance at Gu Xu beside him.

That guy had already prepared the ink and was leisurely leaning back in his chair, eyes closed, seemingly relaxed and unperturbed.

This increased the pressure on Ma Qin even more.

After a quarter of an hour, the sound of a bell rang.

The attendants distributed the sealed exam papers to the two candidates.

They each opened the pouches, took out the test papers, and silently perused them without touching their brushes.

The hall fell into silence, with only the sound of raindrops tapping on the leaves outside.

Gu Xu opened his eyes and began casually browsing through the test paper.

For someone with the talent of "Eidetic Memory," the theoretical exam was his most confident segment.

The densely packed words on the test paper didn't make him restless; instead, they made him more relaxed.

Everything was within his grasp.

When the second bell rang, the two candidates began to write.

"You have the duration of an incense stick." The attendant supervising the exam spoke in a cold tone.

Upon hearing this, Ma Qin's heart skipped a beat, and he couldn't help but feel anxious.

The duration of an incense stick was roughly half an hour.

Completing this nine-page test paper within such a limited time posed a considerable challenge for him.

He collected his thoughts, flipped two pages back in the paper, and decided to start with the easier questions within the limited time.

On the other hand, Gu Xu remained calm and proceeded systematically, carefully reading each question from the beginning.

In his eyes, each question presented a similar level of difficulty.

The first question on the paper read:

"Please describe the characteristics and weaknesses of the Cat Rongpo."

After pondering for two seconds, Gu Xu picked up his brush and earnestly wrote down his answer: "Cat Rongpo, with the appearance of an old woman with a cat's head, is a 'wild ghost'-level evil spirit that preys on children. It possesses a third eye on top of its head, which can be blinded to kill it."

Then, he looked at the second question:

"What is a Pupil Person?"

He thought for a moment and wrote, "A monster formed from a human's eye pupil."

The third question was: "Please explain the origin of the ghost 'Meng Shuangshi'."

Gu Xu answered, "In ancient times, there were siblings who became husband and wife and were exiled to Kongtong. They died embracing each other. Their corpses were nourished by Yin energy, and seven years later, they were reborn as a monster with two heads, four hands, and four feet, known as 'Meng Shuangshi.'"

The fourth question was: "Please list three methods to eliminate an immortal body possessed by a ghost or monster."

Gu Xu answered, "A cultivator's true elemental fire; metals imbued with the attributes of the scorching sun; special talismans that harness the power of the sun, moon, and stars."

...

Reading ten thousand volumes, writing with divine inspiration.

Gu Xu's colleagues often said that his mind was like a library—a repository of knowledge in the realm of cultivation and dealing with ghosts and monsters.

But when he was doing the test, Gu Xu felt his mind was more like a search engine.

As long as he inputted the question, the answer naturally emerged without him having to ponder over it.

Thus, he became increasingly relaxed.

Accompanied by the sound of rain outside the window, his pen danced gracefully on the white paper, outlining elegant and flowing regular script characters.

It was akin to drawing talismans as he usually did—free, casual, and effortlessly fluid.