Chapter 277 : Trial
Chapter 277: Trial
Inside Qianyuan Hall, a curtain hung before each seat, and upon each curtain was projected a light image — vividly displaying the scenes within the Tower of Merits.
The seat of the Duke of Jingguo’s Residence was situated near the front. Representing the Duke was Gu Haochuan, seated beside his disciple Gu Zhengshan, with Miss Gu Yuyong sitting on the other side.
All three raised their heads to look at the curtain where Chen Ming was facing a group of “Great Wei” generals — only to turn and flee without a fight.
Gu Yuyong frowned slightly. “He’s merely a Third-Grade Assistant General. Why doesn’t Little Seventh dare to face him?”
With his Second-Grade strength, killing a Third-Grade opponent and a dozen ordinary soldiers should not have been difficult.
Merit handed right to his face — and he still refused to take it?
The Tower of Merits was an extraordinary artifact, containing its own inner world, where countless heroic souls of soldiers from the previous dynasty lingered. It existed specifically to temper the younger generation.
Inside the Tower, one could experience a real battlefield and clash with those heroic souls.
Later, the Founding Emperor of Great Jin decreed that the Tower of Merits would be used as the trial during the Night Banquet of the Ghost Festival, opened once every twenty years.
It was the only way to earn military merit without stepping onto a real battlefield.
Within the Tower, slaying the souls of Great Wei soldiers would grant battle merits.
This trial was a contest — of who could accumulate the most.
Thus, it tested not only strength, but also strategy.
Gu Haochuan was quite pleased with Chen Ming’s reaction. The boy was indeed smart. To remain cautious upon entering an unknown realm — that was not easy.
Perhaps… a little too smart.
He had deliberately not told the boy about the nature of the Night Banquet trial, partly out of concern.
With that boy’s movement technique, as long as he stayed cautious, almost no one could trap him in the battlefield — unless he reached the seventh layer, where souls of the Divine Repository Realm resided.
But if he truly did reach the seventh layer, shining too brightly and catching the attention of the Empress Dowager or His Majesty, that would spell trouble.
In the five hundred years since the founding of Great Jin, out of more than twenty Night Banquets, only two people had ever entered the seventh layer.
Both later became figures of immense renown.
Gu Haochuan’s feelings were complicated — on one hand, he feared the boy might slack off and cost the Gu Family their chance at a Heavenly Residence quota;
on the other, he worried the boy might perform too well and slip beyond his control.
Hence, he simply chose not to tell him anything — better to let him face it unprepared.
These calculations naturally couldn’t be voiced aloud. He merely said, “On the battlefield, caution is always best.”
Just then, someone suddenly exclaimed, “Look! Wang Jinhu’s merits have already surpassed a hundred!”
They turned their gazes toward the central curtain, where a ranking list appeared — showing the top twenty participants by merit.
At this moment, Wang Jinhu’s name stood first, with over a hundred points.
That meant he had already slain a Third-Grade Assistant General.
In the Tower of Merits:
Killing a Seventh Grade or below soul earned 1 merit point;
Sixth to Fourth Grade, 10 points;
Third Grade, 100 points;
Second Grade, 200 points;
First Grade, 300 points.
They were still on the first layer, where the strongest enemies were of Third Grade.
Soon, the rankings shifted again — Duan Sijue and Ling Qingying’s names surged into the top three.
As for Gu Xianyu, his name didn’t even make the top twenty.
Miss Gu scowled in irritation. “That Little Seventh, why hasn’t he taken action yet?”
……
Meanwhile, the royal family’s viewing experience was quite different.
They could freely choose which participant’s image to observe.
At the Prince Yan’s Residence seat, Lady Xia transmitted her voice to her daughter. “Do not forget your promise.”
Xia Mudan nodded silently.
Lady Xia then switched the image to Gu Xianyu’s battlefield.
In truth, they were not the only ones watching him.
The Princess Royal and Princess Mingyu were also observing Gu Xianyu’s progress.
For those undergoing the trial, the Night Banquet of the Ghost Festival was a grand event.
For the audience, it was a rare spectacle.
The Emperor, turning to the somewhat dispirited Empress, asked, “My Queen, who do you think will win first place in this trial?”
The Empress’s mind wasn’t on the trials at all. She shook her head slightly. “This concubine cannot say.”
“What were you just watching, then?”
“Nothing.”
The Empress forced a smile to hide her discomfort, then suggested lightly, “Your Majesty, why don’t we make a wager?”
The Emperor’s curiosity was piqued. “Oh? What shall we wager on?”
“I wager that the young lady will take first place. If I win, I want Your Majesty’s ‘Spring Blossoms and Autumn Moon’ painting.”
“Very well. Then I’ll bet on Wang Jinhu.”
Seeing her finally interested, the Emperor laughed. “And if I win, what should I ask for?”
At that, the Princess Royal interjected, “Elder Brother, I wish to join as well.”
The Empress smiled. “Oh? Zhao Yu, who are you betting on?”
The Princess Royal replied, “I’ll wager on Gu Xianyu.”
The Empress was surprised. “The Little Seventh from the Duke of Jingguo’s Residence? You’re that confident in him?”
The Princess smiled faintly. “Naturally.”
The Emperor chuckled. “Good. Then I’ll take your bet as well.”
With that, he waved his hand, and three curtains descended before him — displaying Ling Qingying, Wang Jinhu, and Gu Xianyu as they advanced through their trials.
……
Unaware of all that transpired outside, Chen Ming had evaded the small Great Wei troop and begun scouting the area.
He quickly discovered that this space spanned only a few square kilometers, bounded by impassable cliffs.
He had a vague guess — this was a type of secret realm, somewhat similar to the Ink Realm within Xiazhou City’s Grand Prison.
Within this space, there were only about twenty Great Wei soldiers —
one Third Grade, three Fifth Grade, and the rest below Seventh Grade.
None posed a real threat to him.
“So this is what the Tower of Merits means, huh?”
Recalling the eunuch’s earlier explanation, Chen Ming now understood the trial’s rules.
Killing these Great Wei soldiers would grant merit points, and when all was done, the top five in total merits would receive entry to the Heavenly Residence.
That was fair.
The only problem was — he didn’t know how much the others would score.
“Seems like I’ll just have to farm as many points as possible.”
He thought to himself — the more, the better.
This kind of grind, he was already used to.
After all, he’d been farming experience points every day lately, and had long mastered the art.
To maximize his merits, he would have to calculate carefully and conserve his Gang Origin Energy — that was the key.
Thus began his hunt.
Relying on his superior cultivation and movement, he slaughtered all twenty Great Wei soldiers with little effort.
【You have slain an LV30 enemy. You gained 10,000 EXP.】
【You have slain an LV50 enemy. You gained 30,000 EXP.】
【You have slain an LV70 enemy. You gained 80,000 EXP.】
【……】
“Huh? I can even gain experience here?”
Chen Ming was pleasantly surprised. Even a mosquito’s meat was still meat — any bit of experience was worth taking.
For the past half month, he’d been in Qingwei Heaven killing resentful spirits, nearly wiping them out.
This wasn’t an actual game; those monsters didn’t respawn.
……
“Clever.”
The Emperor couldn’t help but praise after watching Gu Xianyu’s precise elimination of the soldiers.
It wasn’t his first time viewing this trial — he knew the first layer wasn’t difficult. The true limitation lay in the Gang Origin Energy.
Within the Tower, its recovery was extremely slow.
Thus, to earn more merits, one had to use every bit of energy efficiently.
So far, only Gu Xianyu had managed that.
As for the others — Wang Jinhu disdained such caution.
Ling Qingying understood the principle, but couldn’t execute it as well as Gu Xianyu.
The Emperor smiled. “Zhao Yu, your eye for talent is as sharp as ever. The Duke of Jingguo is truly blessed to have such a fine son.”
The Princess Royal replied, “Has Elder Brother never heard of his deeds?”
Her words immediately drew several curious glances — even one from behind the curtain of the dragon throne.
The Emperor frowned slightly. “Indeed, I have not.”
She smiled with a touch of pride. “He was once suppressed by his brothers, dared not even remain in the capital, and personally requested to be stationed in Xiazhou, where he even joined the Six Doors Authority.”
The Emperor was astonished. “Truly?”
The affairs of the Duke of Jingguo’s Residence were not significant enough to reach the imperial ear.
The Princess continued, “After arriving in Xiazhou, he soared like a dragon returning to the sea — performing several earth-shaking feats.
He slew two First-Grade experts of the Nine Nether Sect, and even killed a First-Grade Purple-Robed traitor who defected from the Six Doors Authority.”
The Emperor’s eyes widened slightly. “A true prodigy indeed.”
A mere Second-Grade cultivator, yet he had slain three First-Grades. It was astonishing.
He gazed once more at Gu Xianyu’s image — the more he saw, the more he liked.
Perhaps his caution was forged by his past in the Duke’s Residence.
The Princess Royal smiled. “Elder Brother, have you decided what you’ll give me when you lose?”
The Emperor didn’t truly care who won or lost. As long as it amused the Empress and his sister, that was worth more than any wager. “It’s still too early to say. Gu Xianyu is young — he may not surpass Wang Jinhu.”
“We shall see.”
Feeling the watchful gazes withdraw, the Princess hid a knowing smile.
She wasn’t foolish — she wouldn’t expose that matter herself.
No, such things were far more entertaining when revealed by the one involved.
She eagerly anticipated that moment — when Gu Xianyu took first place and spoke the truth himself.
Oh, how marvelous the reactions of those schemers would be!
Raising her eyes toward the curtain showing his trial, as Gu Xianyu was transmitted into the second layer, surrounded by even more foes, she thought with delight—
“Boy, you’d better not disappoint me!”