Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 111: Three Days of Farewell
The dragon's soul was shattered by a sword, and part of its aura was absorbed by the golden seal.

The huge body of the dragon fell straight from the sky and landed in a patch of grass in the mountains.

When Lu Zheng saw this scene, a happy smile appeared on his face and he breathed a sigh of relief.

The death of the evil dragon is a great disaster that has been eliminated.

The increase in literary energy restored some of Lu Zheng's energy and spirit.

He slowly stood up and walked straight towards the dragon's body.

An Jing and the other two also landed next to the dragon's corpse.

Qing Xuan stroked his beard and smiled, saying leisurely, "It's been a long time since I killed a demon so happily."

This was the first time he killed a powerful demon at the quasi-fifth level, although it was the combined efforts of several people, and it was not his own achievement.

But such things are also worth remembering and bragging about.

The three of them looked at the dragon's corpse in front of them, their emotions fluctuating.

Suddenly, An Jing and the other two turned their heads slightly and looked in the same direction.

Lu Zheng was seen walking towards them slowly, with a calm expression on his face.

Xiao Shan looked at Lu Zheng with complicated eyes. He didn't expect that Lu Zheng's talent was even better than he imagined.

After just a short while of not seeing each other, Lu Zheng had actually become a successful candidate in the imperial examination, which was completely beyond his expectations.

Just now, Lu Zheng caused changes in the world with his own actions, and even gained some benefits from it.

Xiao Shan couldn't help but ask, "When did you break through and become a Juren of Heaven and Earth?"

"Yesterday." Lu Zheng answered truthfully.

Xiao Shan was deeply disturbed and sighed, "In less than twenty days, you managed to break through from a scholar to a Juren. This is rare in the world..."

In the past, Xiaoshan had only heard some rumors that some gifted people could make great progress in their studies in a short period of time.

This was the first time I had seen it with my own eyes, and I didn't know what words to use to describe Lu Zheng's talent.

"Less than twenty days!"

An Jing's beautiful eyes widened slightly. She didn't know when Lu Zheng became a scholar of heaven and earth. She thought that Lu Zheng had been a scholar for quite some time.

Now hearing what Xiao Shan said, she was extremely surprised.

Xiao Shan looked at An Jing and said respectfully, "Lu Zheng registered at the beginning of this month and went to the Confucian Temple to worship the saint and open the Wen Palace. At that time, the literary aura was green and only a foot long."

The strength that Lu Zheng had just displayed was already at the third level of Confucianism and Taoism, with a pure aura of righteousness, and a pure green color.

And such changes took place in less than twenty days.

If it were other practitioners, they might be able to use natural treasures and elixirs to break through to a higher realm in a short period of time.

But Confucian and Taoist scholars cannot do this, and they are not canonized by the court. To be a scholar who breaks through directly to heaven and earth, one must have real talent and knowledge.

An Jing looked at Lu Zheng and thought to himself that it was no wonder that Lu Zheng could say such boastful words before.

It turns out that being selected by heaven and earth is indeed a simple matter for Lu Zheng.

She thought Lu Zheng was good enough, but it turned out that he was even more evil than she had imagined.

"how did you do it?"

An Jing found it difficult to suppress his curiosity.

Lu Zheng thought for a moment and replied, "I just learned some of the words and deeds of the saints, and then did good deeds, accumulated virtue, and eliminated evil and defended the truth."

After hearing these words, the three of them felt as if everything had been said, yet it also seemed as if nothing had been said.

Qing Xuan couldn't help but smile and said, "It seems that Mr. Lu is following the path of ancient Confucianism."

The Confucian way of spiritual practice also has many branches.

Among them, poetry, calligraphy and painting can only be regarded as minor arts.

If you want to become a scholar, even if there is a shortcut to be appointed by the court, you still need to have enough talent and be able to write books and even start a school of thought to reach that height.

Lu Zheng did not take the imperial examination, but instead cultivated a righteous character through his real abilities.

This is clearly following the ancient Confucian path, which has its own way of cultivating the noble spirit.

Such Confucian and Taoist scholars are extremely talented and are not restricted by the court.

Even other countries are willing to spend money to recruit and train a man who is a great scholar.

An Jing wanted to say something but stopped herself. She really wanted to recruit Lu Zheng and bring him back to Tai'an, but thinking of Lu Zheng's personality, she was afraid that he would not be willing to go with her.

If some words were said now, it would ruin the little relationship they had before.

Lu Zheng saw that the three people were still looking at him and felt a little uncomfortable.

However, it seemed that these people did not notice anything more and did not care about the strange phenomenon in the Wen Palace that he had revealed before.

I thought that those strange visions were caused by Wen Bao's poems and didn't think too much about it.

Lu Zheng couldn't help but point at the dragon's corpse and change the subject: "How do we divide this thing?"

Qingxuan and Xiaoshan didn't say anything, but instead turned their gaze to Anjing.

Among the people present, An Jing has the most noble status, so it is natural that An Jing has the final say on how to deal with the dragon.

An Jing said softly: "I came south this time to find dragon energy. I have just obtained the dragon soul and taken some of its dragon energy. The remaining dragon corpse will be distributed among you." In order to kill the dragon, everyone present contributed.

An Jing was not so greedy as to offend others because of the remaining dragon energy.

Qing Xuan stroked his beard and said, "There are treasures inside this dragon!"

As he spoke, Qingxuan controlled the sword and directly broke open the dragon's belly.

A stream of spiritual power struck the corpse, and a pearl the size of a baby's fist flew out.

Pearls contain spiritual charm and are filled with a special aura.

Qing Xuan said: "The Jiaolong Dragon Ball is a rare item. Please accept it, Princess!"

Dragons are hard to find in the world, and there are even fewer dragons that can produce dragon balls.

Although this dragon ball was formed in the body of an evil dragon, the aura within it is pure. If worn frequently, it can nourish the body, mind and soul.

When An Jing saw the dragon ball, his expression remained calm and he smiled, "You can divide it among yourselves."

Qing Xuan blinked when he heard that and looked at Lu Zheng, "Little friend Lu also put in a lot of effort just now. It would be a shame to break this thing into three pieces. I'll give it to you."

After saying that, Qingxuan threw the dragon ball directly to Lu Zheng.

Seeing this, Lu Zheng was in a dilemma whether to accept it or not.

Seeing that the dragon ball was about to fall to the ground, Lu Zheng waved his hand and took it in his hand.

The dragon ball feels warm to the touch, and a trace of power enters the body to nourish itself.

Qing Xuan smiled and said, "Take it. This is very suitable for you. You just used your own blood and energy to write poetry, which consumed a lot of energy... Your poetry helped me to comprehend the Dragon Slaying Style. I have gained a lot. I can't rely on my age and experience. It's too greedy."

Xiao Shan, who was standing beside him, also smiled and said, "Just now, the righteous energy of righteousness filled the heaven and earth. I have also realized a trace of righteousness. Please accept this dragon ball. You deserve it."

Seeing this, Lu Zheng knew that if he continued to refuse, it would seem a bit hypocritical.

"Then it would be disrespectful for this junior to refuse."

Lu Zheng smiled slightly to express his gratitude and put the dragon ball away.

Seeing Lu Zheng take the dragon ball, Qing Xuan smiled and said, "This dragon meat is a very tonic. There's a lot of meat, so let's divide it among the four of us!"

Although An Jing just said that he would not participate in the distribution, Qingxuan would not be so tactless. He still needs to be worldly-wise.

So Qingxuan picked up the sword and began to cut the dragon's body.

Xiaoshan went to the side, took out a pen and paper, and prepared to write a letter to the county magistrate, informing him that the dragon had been killed and there was no need to ask people from the state capital for support.

After a while, the letter was finished.

The letter turned into a black swallow and flew quickly to Kaiyang County.

Lu Zheng looked at the flying Heiyan, feeling curious about what this method was.

Xiao Shan noticed Lu Zheng's gaze and explained, "The paper I use is a special kind of letter paper. I write letters with literary energy, and my thoughts can be conveyed wherever they are. A letter written with ten feet of literary energy can be delivered a hundred miles away."

As he spoke, Xiao Shan took out several pieces of rice paper that exuded a spiritual aura and had special imprints and patterns on them, all of which were bird patterns, and each one was slightly different.

Upon hearing this, Lu Zheng suddenly realized that in this world of cultivation, the methods used by various practitioners were very different and unique, which made him feel quite novel.

"Take it. If there is anything important in the future, you can use this letter to send it back to the county. It is more convenient than asking someone to deliver the letter." Xiao Shan said.

"Okay." Lu Zheng nodded and did not refuse.

An Jing walked to Lu Zheng's side and asked softly, "Now that this matter is over, what are you going to do next, Mr. Lu?"

Upon hearing this, Lu Zheng replied, "Of course I have to continue my study tour. I said before that I would travel all over Kaiyang County, but I've only covered less than half of it."

Xiao Shan next to him was surprised. He didn't expect that Lu Zheng, who had become a successful candidate in the imperial examination, was still thinking about this matter. He really didn't forget his original intention.

This kind of mentality is not something that ordinary literati can achieve.

Little do people know that after passing the imperial examinations, many people’s personalities change drastically, they forget their original intentions, and it becomes difficult for them to improve their realm.

An Jing nodded slightly. "Then, when will Mr. Lu go to Tai'an City? There are so many talented people there, it's worth it for Mr. Lu to study and discuss the Dao... If Mr. Lu ever arrives in Tai'an City, please let me know. I will definitely treat him well."

After that, An Jing took out a jade token and handed it to Lu Zheng, "Mr. Lu, come to my Princess's Mansion with this jade token, and no one dares to stop you."

Lu Zheng didn't take the jade token. Instead, he said, "Tai'an City is prosperous and full of talented people. I'm not very knowledgeable and it will probably take a long time before I can go there to study... Princess, please leave this token to someone who needs it more."

An Jing smiled and put the jade token away naturally.

It was within her expectations that Lu Zheng would not take the jade token.

An Jing couldn't help but nod and said, "Alright, by the time Master Lu comes to Tai'an, I think he'll already be well-known in Anguo. Why would he need this to see me? Maybe if I want to see you, I'll need to prepare a letter."

"Uh, Princess, you're exaggerating." Lu Zheng said helplessly.

An Jing chuckled and said quietly, "Is it an exaggeration? It's me who has always underestimated Master Lu. When do you plan to become a Jinshi of Heaven and Earth? Why don't you let me know first so I can prepare."

There are many successful scholars in this world, but most of these Confucian and Taoist scholars are reclusive masters, and few of them are famous in public.

As a result, in the nine countries of the world, the number of literati registered with the government is much smaller than the actual number.

An Jing really wants to witness the emergence of a great scholar with his own eyes.

"This……"

Lu Zheng didn't know how to answer for a moment.

(End of this chapter)