Monarch of Evernight: Wudongyue

bsp;The Xixia Peak on the outermost edge of Yunshan Mountain has a very gentle slope, and the dark blue mountain stretches out on the vast plain in the middle reaches of the Lanjiang River.

Many exquisite pavilions and courtyards are built according to the mountains. From a distance, they look like layers of terraces. These are the villas of the Song clan. The "Wen Dao Manor" occupies the entire peak and is looming in the mountain fog most of the time.

Four generations of the Song Dynasty family live together, and Mrs. Anguo, who is about to celebrate her 100th birthday, still holds great power. Not everyone is qualified to enter Wen Dao Manor, let alone live in it, so the surrounding land has become a sought-after Feng Shui treasure land, and it has taken decades to form such a wonder. Among them, those with the best scenery and the best terrain naturally belong to the direct lineage branches.

Walking all the way up the mountain, Qianye deeply understood what it means to be in a high place, a place with bells and bells ringing, and a house with food and food. Even the maids who occasionally hurried past were all dressed in brocade and neon, and their clothes were windy.

There are retro-style buildings everywhere. The perpetual towers and steam pipes are either painstakingly covered with specially designed scenery, or they were buried deep underground at the beginning of construction so as not to damage the landscape.

Qianye was vaguely aware of why the ancestor of the Song Dynasty changed the rules for the heir examination thirty years ago.

Comparing it to the Zhao Clan cities he had seen, the Song Clan pursued flashy life details so much and consumed a lot of resources in unnecessary places. Perhaps it was too extravagant for the upper echelons of the empire.

They finally reached the halfway point of the mountain. This height was considered quite prestigious among the Song clan. There are seven or eight courtyards in a row among the trees. They are not much different in scale and style. They are obviously built at the same time.

However, from the repair and maintenance of each courtyard and the entry and exit of servants, it can still be seen that the "Yunshen Hall" that Song Zining entered was quite lonely and silent.

Only after Qianye walked in did he realize why this loneliness came from. It turned out that most of the courtyard was closed, and only a small courtyard on the east side was cleared out as their stay these days.

This "Yunshen Hall" is still under the name of Song Zining's father, but he withdrew from the power center of the Song Dynasty due to physical weakness as early as Song Zining's childhood. He has been resting in the "Wendao Manor" all year round and has not been seen in public for a long time. He shows up and never comes to live here.

As for Song Zining himself, there is another courtyard with a garden by the river at the foot of the mountain, where his concubines and most of his entourage are placed. However, in order to prepare for the big exam quietly, Song Zining, Qianye, and another guest warrior will stay here these days.

The side courtyard is not big and is decorated in a quiet and ancient style.

The yard was covered with bluestone slabs, leaving only mud at the four corners. Several clumps of green bamboo were planted there, two banana plants were planted, a strange stone was placed, and there was an ancient octagonal well, which looked like it was coming out of the dust. .

Even if Qianye doesn’t like this style, he can’t help but praise, “It’s a good place.”

Song Zining took a large stack of documents from the guard who stayed behind, called Qianye into the main hall, and said: "The layout in the courtyard is actually a force array, which can double the concentration of natural force at dawn every day. You can try it tomorrow and see the effect."

Qianye was stunned and felt very speechless. Don’t know how to praise the designer for not only focusing on art but not on practicality? We should still sigh that they even have to create some artistic conception for an energy-gathering force circle.

As Song Zining walked, he flipped through the documents in his hand and took out a few pages and handed them to Qianye. They were the materials for the heir examination.

He said: "Your guest status has been registered. I will arrange for someone to take you to pick out equipment later. It is not early now. We will go to the library and training room tomorrow. Wait for me to have dinner together in the evening."

After saying that, Song Zining turned around and gave some instructions to his personal guards, including arranging the injured before, and left in a hurry. Next, there were a lot of things waiting for him to do. Not only did he have to rush to the "Wen Dao Manor" to greet a bunch of elders from Anguo Gong's wife to his father, but he also had to report to several elders and report on the work that had been assigned recently. transaction results.

Qianye sat down in the quiet small hall, flipped through the information Song Zining gave him, and shook his head.

Even an outsider like him could see that Mrs. An Guo's reform of the heir assessment had actually failed. Song Zining’s experience is proof.

Due to the limited number of direct descendants of the Song clan, the ranking method has always been different from the other three clans. There is no distinction between hall titles or heads of households, but a series of teeth in the direct line of the same generation. Song Zining is a great-grandson, ranking seventh, which shows that the number of direct descendants is small. The Song Dynasty clan also has the tradition of suppressing the direct lineage and suppressing the side branches, and has firmly held the clan power for hundreds of years.

With such a shortage of people in the direct line, a disciple with Song Zining's qualifications would actually be designated as a candidate for marriage between nobles due to insufficient cultivation potential. You must know that the age for the enlightenment of the Force in a family is between six and eight years old, so there is enough time to correct the test results.

But Song Zining chose to enter the Huangquan training camp when he was eight years old, which shows his situation at the time. A large part of the reason for this situation is that his father is not in the center of power, so even the direct bloodline that should be valued has lost its protective effect.

If a family is so narrow-minded in cultivating its children, and those who are not directly in power cannot obtain resources, it will inevitably become a stagnant water.

However, the Song clan, based on the characteristics of the Shang clan, had no need to defend their fiefdoms and expand their territory, so they did not feel the threats of death and war, which largely covered up the consequences of this narrow-mindedness. So much so that today, it cannot be reversed by changing a system, because the system has lost the soil for implementation.

This sect with the most wealth has the weakest military force. I wonder if its leaders have seen the shadow behind the prosperity of flowers and brocades.

Qianye rested for a while after reading the information, and then a personal guard came to report and drove him to the Song clan's outer gate arsenal. He learned from his bodyguard that Song Zining's other guest warrior would not arrive until tomorrow night, so he would be the only one going to the library tomorrow.

This time the Song clan invested a lot of resources for the heir examination, especially the benefits for guest warriors were extremely generous, mainly in terms of weapons and library openings.

After the guest warrior registers, he can borrow a set of equipment from the outer arsenal. As long as he wins more than three games in the arena, he can buy it at half price. If you win five games, it will be given away completely for free.

This is equivalent to buying a life. Although it is a life-and-death arena, it is impossible to attack a son of the Song Dynasty without any worries. But when two guest warriors meet together, if each side has old grudges, It is very likely to determine the difference between life and death.

Not to mention the family library, which is rarely open to outsiders. Although there are restrictions on open bookshelves now, you can only read on the spot, which is an extremely rare opportunity. If you are lucky enough and find a book of exercises that suits you just right, it will be equivalent to the harvest of ten years of service to the family.

Only after Qianye arrived did he realize that this so-called outer sect arsenal was almost the size of a small town. He followed Song Zining's bodyguard across the threshold and saw an old man sleeping drowsily in the small space separated by two desks on the side of the door.

The personal guard found An Renyi's name in the register, and then respectfully woke up the old man and said, "Mr. Lu, this is the visiting warrior of the Seventh Young Master. Now come to choose the equipment for the big exam."

The old man slowly opened his eyes and glanced at Qianye.

When his eyes opened, Qianye felt as if there was a flash of lightning in the room, and for a moment he couldn't see anything. And the bright feeling still exists in the consciousness, as if the whole body, inside and outside, is also left in the electric light, every detail is visible!

Qianye was horrified in his heart and instinctively ran the Song Ancient Scroll Yao Chapter, and the pure force of dawn emanated from the nodes. At this time, he didn't even dare to activate the latent ability of his blood. All his blood shrank, and the dark gold blood rushed back to his heart for the first time, sinking into the depths together with the ability runes.

The old man's eyes scanned Qianye back and forth several times, "He's from the Seventh Young Master. He looks good. Let's go in! Remember to tell him the rules." The old man said and slowly closed his eyes.

The guard hurriedly said: "Don't worry."

After that, the two of them prepared to step into the tall alloy door in front of them.

Old Lu suddenly said from behind them: "Young people tend to be impatient. The arsenal is very big and there are many things in it. Don't be anxious and pick slowly. The Song family is so big, there are always good things."

Qianye turned around after hearing this, nodded politely, and said, "Thank you, Mr. Lu, for your advice."

Mr. Lu waved his hand and began to doze off again.

The outer arsenal is open to guest warriors with level 4 weapons and level 5 force gun areas.

The force gun has limited room for use in an arena battle, but Qianye couldn't bring out the Twin Flowers, so he randomly chose a mid-range pistol and then focused on melee weapons.

Qianye walked and watched, picking up a weapon from time to time, weighing it, and waving it a few times. The weapons he acquired were getting heavier and heavier, but whether it was a battle ax or a heavy hammer, they always felt not very comfortable.

The personal guard followed Qianye all the way, with doubts on his face. Like Qianye, he was at the eighth level and had some understanding of the basic weight of these weapons, but he was very surprised to see Qianye holding it as light as a feather.

He couldn't help but hold the long hammer that Qianye had just put down. It didn't move at all when he lifted it, and he couldn't help but be surprised. Looking at Qianye's slender and slightly thin figure, he was filled with admiration.

Slowly Qianye had turned this area more than half a circle, and suddenly a heavy sword leaning against the wall in the corner fell into his eyes.

It is half longer than an ordinary sword and is close to the length of a two-handed giant sword, but the blade is only slightly wider. The blade of the sword is dark and without any gorgeous decoration. But Qianye's eyes were involuntarily attracted.

He walked over and reached out to hold the hilt of the sword. He wanted to lift it up to take a look, but unexpectedly it fell down and the sword almost fell out of his hand.

Qianye was surprised. This weapon was several times heavier than any weapon he had tried before. The second time he didn't take it lightly anymore, he knew the strength accurately, and finally lifted the long sword steadily, placed it flat in front of his eyes, and slowly opened the scabbard.

The blade of the sword is dark and inconspicuous. It is not particularly sharp, nor does it have a weird design like no blade.

There are several Force lines on the spine of the sword, which are simple and rough, with a primitive beauty. However, that also means that this force array cannot have such complex functions. Just like no matter how accomplished you are, it is difficult to tell a colorful story in just a few words.

Qianye looked at it several times but was still unable to confirm the material of the sword. If we were to say what was special about it, perhaps it was its surprisingly heavy weight.

The more he looked at it, the more he felt that the long sword seemed to be an unfinished work, like a piece of peerless material, but the carver only carved a few cuts and put it down casually.

Qianye turned the sword around and saw two words: Dongyue.