Taking Xuan Yuan Po as an example, entering the proclamation without having battled, with the reasoning being expectations for his future; this was bound to raise speculation, yet the council didn’t seem to care. Yet another example, taking Tang Thirty-Six and Her Highness, Luo Luo’s reason for being listed, it was as if the council had purposefully used the evaluations to emphasise Chen Chang Sheng’s role and importance.
Some of the contemplators started to have inklings of some even more unthinkable possibilities.
… this fall’s sudden update to the Proclamation of Azure Clouds was due to Her Highness, Luo Luo’s stunning improvement, but at the same time, the council also wanted to make the entire continent aware of Chen Chang Sheng’s existence?
If this was to be true, what reasoning could there be behind it?
At the moment crowd had almost dispersed, an ancient sounding voice arose within the woods.
“Do you all want to know what Tang Tang was going to say? What he wanted to tell you was…”
Upon hearing those words, the people who were leaving, immediately stilled their steps.
The ancient sounding voice continued, “… Chen Chang Sheng’s aim is to become the man to take the first place amongst the First Banner in the Grand Examination.”
The woods erupted into an uproar.
Chen Chang Sheng wanted to take the first position upon the First Banner?
The crowd turned towards the source of the voice in a stunned stupor.
The Education Board’s Archbishop, His Eminence, Mei Li Sha, under the support of Minister Xin, emerged from within the woods.
This elderly person, who had lived for untold years, already had a crooked posture. A face full of age spots and wrinkles, partially obscured, but couldn’t hide the joy and satisfaction within his eyes.
This joy and satisfaction was obviously for Chen Chang Sheng.
Everyone hurriedly paid their respects in a formal greeting, taking care not to perform anything that might be taken as an affront, yet their faces still showed the shock and disbelief from hearing what the Archbishop had said.
Even if Orthodox Academy’s achievement today upon the Proclamation of Azure Clouds was attributable to Chen Chang Sheng; as Su Mo Yu had said, and Chen Chang Sheng himself had admitted to, the Grand Examination was something you had to participate in yourself. Chen Chang Sheng had yet to complete his Purification, how was he going to handle the Grand Examination that was imminent? No matter how you looked at it, even entering the Three Grades was impossible, let alone taking first place upon the First Banner.
Priest Huo had an expressionless face, but his eyes revealed a shred of awe; several clergymen, upon exchanging glances with the instructors, could tell the shock they all felt.
Their questions from before were seemingly going to be answered soon; that was the intention, certain parties felt that the display at the Ivy League gathering and the pressure on Chen Chang Sheng from his betrothal to Xu You Rong was still insufficient; some swelling movement from currents beneath the Capital were about to break through the earth.
Yet, what was the reason behind all of this?
The Archbishop looked at the crowd and said: “There isn’t any reason and there doesn’t have to be a reason; since he has already stated that he will take first place upon the First Banner at the Grand Examination, then I will trust his ability to take it.”
The people surrounding the divine avenue didn’t dare to raise their body.
Priest Huo and the other clergy of Li Palace were already prostrating.
Regardless of whether if they believed or not, the Archbishop’s word was something they could only acknowledge.
In front of the Archbishop, no one dared to question or doubt.
But this declaration that the Archbishop had announced in place of Orthodox Academy and Chen Chang Sheng, would quickly spread across the entirety of Li Palace, the entire Capital and the entire continent. Once that had happened, many would hold it in disdain, ridicule, scorn and anger, with all blame being held against Orthodox Academy and Chen Chang Sheng.
The question still lingered.
What was the purpose of this?