Chapter 41: Clad in the Xiezhi Robe, a Single Official Decree!
Night had fallen deep and dark, the training grounds ablaze with radiant lights.
The Selection Trial, which had run from the early hours of the Mao period all the way to the final hour of Xu, had drawn to a close, but the main event everyone had been waiting for was only just beginning.
Atop the high platform.
The six prodigies of Chuwei Prefecture who had risen above the rest now formally joined their respective Sacred Grounds!
After a series of elaborate rituals, Centurion Cao of the Eastern Temple led a group of his subordinates forward to stand before Gu Lin.
He raised his voice, speaking with weighted emphasis:
“From this moment forward, you are a member of the Eastern Temple of the Feathering Divine Dynasty. You shall pledge your loyalty to the Divine Emperor of the Dynasty, faithful without wavering! Eliminate demons and root out evil, protect the borders and bring peace to the people! Punish the wicked and destroy evildoers, purge corruption from the ranks of officials!”
With that, he handed over a sheet of official paper marking Gu Lin’s induction, bearing gilded seals in full—every stamp from the Dynasty’s central authority down to the Eastern Temple of Chu Province was present and accounted for, clearly prepared in advance, needing only the new member’s name branded upon it.
Gu Lin accepted it with reverence, and upon seeing the two characters “Gu Lin” written in bold, flowing script, his emotions surged within him.
Immediately after, several of his new colleagues from the Eastern Temple brought forward trays.
Arranged upon them were various garments, and the first to catch his eye was naturally the official robe meant for wear out in the field.
Centurion Cao introduced each piece one by one:
“This is the Eastern Temple’s official robe.”
“This is the sacrificial robe. Across all twenty-eight provinces under Heaven, whenever a high-ranking official of the Eastern Temple unfortunately passes into the underworld, the sacrificial robe must be worn that same day as a sign of respect and mourning.”
“Of course, when a high official from one of the other three Sacred Grounds dies, there’s no need for us to wear the sacrificial robe—everything proceeds as usual.”
“As for the court robe, it must be worn on any day of ceremonial rites within the Dynasty.”
“………”
After the introductions, Centurion Cao handed over a round waist token forged from pure gold, engraved with the fierce, snarling visage of a Xiezhi:
“This is your waist token. Drip a few drops of essence blood onto it.”
Gu Lin did as instructed.
He steadied his breath and focused his energy, and a drop of essence blood welled up from his acupoint, slowly falling onto the waist token.
“Go change.”
Centurion Cao gestured toward a side chamber just off the high platform.
Gu Lin nodded and carried the tray toward the chamber.
Moments later, a handsome young man emerged slowly, a black cap upon his head and clad in a black Xiezhi robe. The official robe had been woven with the very finest craftsmanship, black and unfathomable as the depths of an abyss, dignified yet magnificent all at once. The Xiezhi embroidered upon the robe looked lifelike, glaring down at the world below with a fierce and menacing expression!
In that instant, the vast training grounds erupted once more into a roar of cheers like crashing waves upon the shore.
“Lord Gu!”
“Lord Gu!”
“Lord Gu!”
The crowd shouted with fervent passion, their voices ringing out in enthusiastic praise.
Here was a prodigy who had risen from Chuwei Prefecture itself, and naturally they held great hopes for him. What was more, having witnessed with their own eyes Lord Gu’s magnificent feat of fighting across cultivation levels, the onlookers of Chuwei Prefecture all hoped this young man’s official career would blaze forward like fire fed with oil, his cultivation climbing ever higher in the years to come.
Amid the crowd, Gu Changchuan shouted along with everyone else, and as he shouted, his eyes slowly reddened.
The onlookers of Shiyang County were overcome with emotion.
He had arrived as Young Master Gu.
A single day later, he was addressed with honor as Lord Gu!
He had carved out a brilliant future with his own two fists.
Gu Lin looked around at everyone gathered, his chest swelling with emotion, his blood running hot, but he forced himself to hold back his excitement.
All of this was only the beginning.
Off to the side, the other five prodigies had also begun their own induction ceremonies.
“Gu Lin.”
Centurion Cao’s gaze fell upon him.
Gu Lin cupped his fists respectfully:
“I pay my respects to you, sir!”
He understood clearly in his heart that this man would likely be his immediate superior.
Centurion Cao spoke concisely, without wasted words:
“You may choose three Blade-Bearers to join the Blade-Bearer Bureau under the Eastern Temple’s jurisdiction.”
Gu Lin pondered for a moment, then shook his head in decline:
“This humble servant has grown accustomed to working alone.”
Centurion Cao fixed his eyes on him and lowered his voice:
“Listen carefully. You may be basking in glory right now, but once you’ve joined the Eastern Temple, you’ll be nothing more than the most ordinary member among a great many others. You’ll need to surpass your exceptionally talented colleagues, step by step, to climb any higher.”
“Of course, right now you can already command the Eastern Temple’s Blade-Bearers by virtue of your rank, but they’re not your own trusted men, and you won’t find them easy to work with. Better to pick three people of your own—then whenever you need something done, you simply give the order, and you won’t waste your own cultivation time on menial matters.”
Gu Lin thought it over for a moment. Since that was how it worked, he might as well choose three.
He asked respectfully:
“Sir, must they be candidates from the Selection Trial?”
He was certainly thinking of giving the chubby Wang Mu a leg up.
Centurion Cao nodded.
Gu Lin could only say:
“This humble servant would like Yan Shouxu, Wei Xuan, and Lin Yan’er, all of Shiyang County.”
Dean Yan had, at the very least, sent a gift of money to his family before, so he might as well do his grandson a favor in return.
As for Wei Xuan and Lin Yan’er, they had once treated him to a meal.
Upon hearing this, Centurion Cao immediately made the arrangements.
Gu Lin stood quietly, sensing a sharp, hate-filled gaze fixed on him from not far away.
He looked over calmly.
It was Zhao Can.
Zhao Can made no effort to hide his hatred, his eyes locked onto Gu Lin like a hawk’s, as though he wished he could tear him apart limb from limb.
Their eyes met, and Gu Lin, without any warning, let out a small smile.
He would never forget the way Zhao Can had once looked down on him back at the Shiyang Martial Hall—that condescending scorn, those eyes that regarded him like some insignificant ant, so glaring it had been unbearable to witness, and the way Zhao Can had so carelessly clapped him on the shoulder, a gesture that had made his very insides twist and ache back then.
A noble member of the Sacred Grounds—wasn’t he, Gu Lin, one as well now?
Gu Lin’s eyes gradually turned cold, and he suddenly turned his head toward Centurion Cao, asking respectfully:
“Sir, do I now hold the authority to investigate any official ranked below seventh grade?”
Centurion Cao nodded:
“Draft the official documents yourself, stamp them yourself. Try to ensure the evidence of wrongdoing is thorough and complete, and that the Sacred Grounds’ Dao Discipline Office is satisfied with it afterward.”
“By the way, let me explain this Dao Discipline Office to you. Across the Dynasty’s twenty-eight provinces, each province has its own Dao Discipline Office. It answers directly to the Divine Emperor of the Dynasty and is responsible for merit-based promotions across the four Sacred Grounds, disciplinary review, and the punishment of internal crimes—including disputes and life-and-death battles between the Sacred Grounds themselves.”
Gu Lin remained utterly deferential on the surface, but deep within his eyes, a flash of sharp light flickered.
He could draft the official documents himself, stamp them himself!!
Deputy Magistrate Zhao—do you hold seventh grade rank?
I’ll use your blood to consecrate my blade!
He’d already offended Zhao Can regardless, and there was no undoing that now—it was a feud to the death either way. Was he supposed to humble himself and beg for peace and reconciliation instead? Did Zhao Can even deserve that? Who wasn’t a genius in this world? Who didn’t hold some measure of power in their hands?
To put it plainly—Gu Lin was a man who never let a single slight go unanswered, and once he’d gained real power, he intended to make full use of it!!
***
Back at the arena where the other candidates still remained, several dozen Blade-Bearers clad in elk-deer official robes suddenly strode forward.
The elk-deer official robe—that meant the Blade-Bearer Bureau of the Eastern Temple.
The one leading them wore a green elk-deer official robe and spoke in a voice like a great bell:
“Yan Shouxu!”
“Wei Xuan!”
“Lin Yan’er!”
“By order of Lord Gu, the three of you shall join the Blade-Bearer Bureau of the Eastern Temple. From this moment forward, you answer only to Lord Gu’s command!”
The moment the words fell, the three of them felt their minds reel, their hearts pounding like war drums, expressions of pure disbelief spreading across their faces.
We… we get to join the Blade-Bearer Bureau?
“Sir……”
Yan Shouxu’s face flushed red, so overwhelmed with excitement that he could barely string words together.
The leader said with a smile:
“We serve under the same roof now—no need to be so formal.”
Yan Shouxu’s head spun, and he looked up at the dazzling, dignified figure atop the high platform with a face full of gratitude.
What had he ever done to deserve this!!
Gu Lin—no, Lord Gu—the debt of this life-remaking kindness could never be repaid!!
Wei Xuan and Lin Yan’er, too, found their eyes brimming with tears. They’d barely crossed paths with Gu Lin at all—just a single encounter in a neighboring county, one shared meal together—and yet somehow Gu Lin had kept it in his heart all this time, and had now given them a reward beyond their wildest dreams!
The Selection Trial was over, and no matter how unwilling they might have felt about it, what could they have done? They’d always known there was a vast gap between themselves and that group of prodigies. Being able to head off to cultivate at some sect afterward would already have counted as a fine outcome.
But never in a thousand years could they have imagined that a single word from Gu Lin would let them, too, leap through the carp gate and become dragons!
The three of them, hearts full of excitement, followed the group of Blade-Bearers toward the side chamber.
Behind them, countless other candidates cast looks of envy and jealousy, while Zhu Yuting stood frozen like a clay statue. He hated himself for having been so foolish, hated himself for having once dared to mock Gu Lin as blind and arrogant beyond his station—and now, who exactly looked foolish?
Ha ha ha ha ha, he had poured every last seed-fated opportunity from his own meridians into Zhao Yao, and now that Zhao Yao had been buried in the underworld, his own path of cultivation was gone, his future was gone, and now he had to stand here and watch, helpless, as those who’d never even measured up to him back at the academy rose to become Blade-Bearers!
Zhu Yuting’s heart felt as though it had been sliced apart, and he slowly sank down into a crouch on the ground, utterly consumed by despair.
Up in the stands, Dean Yan, Patriarch Wei, and the others watched this scene unfold with rapt attention. Many of the onlookers from Shiyang looked on in shock, gradually realizing what had just happened.
Lord Gu had bestowed his favor!
Lord Gu had bestowed his favor!!
“Lord… Lord Gu!”
Dean Yan’s eyes streamed with old tears, and he wiped at them with his sleeve.
Beside him, Deputy Magistrate Zhao kept his face as cold and lifeless as a hollowed-out corpse, but within him, the fire of hatred burned hotter and hotter.
That glory up on the high platform should have belonged to his boy Yao’er. Yao’er’s death—this was a hatred that could never be shared under the same sky!!
Many of the students from Shiyang Academy couldn’t help but glance toward a veiled woman, her figure moving in a daze, fleeing in disgrace alongside her father, Li Jisheng.
Once one of the Three Beauties of Shiyang Academy, two of the three now stood as Blade-Bearers, elevated by the grace and favor of Lord Gu’s glory—while the one who had once held her head highest and hurled the harshest insults and abuse at Lord Gu had fallen to such a wretched and pitiful end.
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