Zhao Xing's actions on the grassland fell into the eyes of the three examiners on the flying boat.
Mainly, he was the first clerk to react and start making scarecrows, and his speed and quality of production were quite impressive.
Other people's scarecrows swayed precariously, but Zhao Xing's scarecrows could run and jump, appearing lifelike.
"Hmm? The Liu Clan's Eighty-One Weaving Method. Is this child a clerk under Senior Gao or Senior Tang?" Chen Shijie asked.
Gao Linong and Tang Wanchun exchanged glances, because they didn't know the complete method at all. They hadn't even recognized what technique it was at first, let alone taught it. How could they teach something they didn't know?
"He is not a clerk under me."
"Nor is he mine."
"Oh? This child's scarecrow Spell is quite exquisite. I wonder whose clerk he is."
Tang Wanchun mused, "The complete Liu Clan's Eighty-One Weaving Method, besides Senior Chen, is probably only known by Old Sifu Xue."
Chen Shijie nodded slightly. Xue Wenzhong had been a Sifu for over sixty years, so it was normal for him to know more.
At his reminder, Tang and Gao also began to observe Zhao Xing.
Unexpectedly, they soon witnessed Zhao Xing fighting with someone for grass, hitting them with a stone, and forcing his colleague to retreat.
Gao Linong snorted, "Hmph, this person's Heart-Nature is unruly. For a mere pile of grass, he actually laid hands on a colleague. He is truly unbearable."
Tang Wanchun glanced at him without speaking. He was watching Chen Shijie's reaction. The head official had just praised this clerk, so for Old Gao to sing a different tune now seemed a bit imprudent.
Chen Shijie said calmly, "A Sifu contends with heaven and earth for food. A bit of sharpness is quite normal. For example, Li Chengfeng, a clerk under Senior Gao, seems quite high-profile in his usual demeanor."
Gao Linong's eyelids twitched. He then realized he had said the wrong thing. Even if he thought that way, he shouldn't have said it to his face.
"Chen Shijie comes from the northern barren mountains and has endured many natural disasters. Perhaps this kid's actions actually suited his taste." Thinking this, Gao Linong immediately changed his tone.
"Senior Chen has a profound insight. It was I who saw things superficially. Moreover, he arrived at that pile of grass first, so he was already in the right."
What does it mean for a higher official to crush someone? This was it.
Chen Shijie's slight reprimand immediately forced Gao Linong to agree, because he was subordinate, and Chen Shijie was the principal.
Zhao Xing was completely unaware of the discussion among the three examiners on the flying boat. After using up the third pile of grass, he finally left the grassland.
At this point, the number of scarecrow Puppets he had created had reached seventy-six!
Under the pressure, he became even more engrossed. By the time he made the sixtieth scarecrow,
the proficiency of 【Repeating Scarecrow】 had broken through 1000, reaching the level of a 'First-Turn Spell'.
Therefore, the subsequent sixteen scarecrows were faster, more agile, and more powerful.
"That's about enough."
By the assigned field, seventy-six scarecrows entered the field, standing with bamboo poles, like soldiers arrayed for battle.
Zhao Xing checked his panel.
His Origin Qi had dropped back below 50.
"According to the current situation, the 【Moving Clouds】 and 【Thunder Strike】 Spells won't last much longer. The consumption to maintain these two Spells is far greater than that of the scarecrows."
After all, scarecrows are supported by Materials; once created, they no longer require Origin Qi. However, Moving Clouds and Thunder Strike consume much more.
Nevertheless, Zhao Xing decided to continue enduring until he could no longer hold on.
After all, scarecrows are not as effective as Moving Clouds and Thunder Strike, and there would certainly be many errors and omissions.
...
During the first quarter-hour of the Minor Heat assessment, 【Moving Clouds】 and 【Thunder Strike】 blocked almost all of the 'Grain-Eating Birds'.
In the second quarter-hour, the scarecrows arrived at the assigned field and waited.
In the third quarter-hour, the frequency of Thunder Strike weakened, and some Grain-Eating Birds began to break through the clouds to peck at the Origin Rice, but they were stopped by the scarecrows.
In the fourth quarter-hour, Thunder Strike was completely abandoned by Zhao Xing, and only Moving Clouds was used to block the Grain-Eating Birds. One-third of them broke through, and the scarecrows began to drive them away with full effort.
In the fifth quarter-hour, quite a few Grain-Eating Birds were struck down by the scarecrows, but five scarecrows were also destroyed.
In the sixth quarter-hour, one-third of the Grain-Eating Birds, having failed to eat for so long, flew away, but the number of destroyed scarecrows also reached twenty-five.
In the seventh quarter-hour, Moving Clouds shrank. Under the scorching weather, Zhao Xing's Origin Qi gradually failed him. He used the scarecrows to attract the Grain-Eating Birds, as the scarecrows' Materials were also made from Origin Rice stalks, a favorite part of the Grain-Eating Birds. However, he also lost more than half of his scarecrows as a result.
In the eighth quarter-hour, Moving Clouds shrank by another half, exposing half of the fields. Zhao Xing had all the scarecrows act as 'sacrifices,' allowing the remaining Grain-Eating Birds to peck at them. At the same time, the fields below also began to suffer damage.
As the ninth quarter-hour arrived, a bell rang in the sky, and all the Grain-Eating Birds above and below the public fields flew away, disappearing into the white clouds.
"Hoo~ Hoo~"
Zhao Xing's mouth was dry, and he was drenched in sweat.
But he couldn't care less and quickly went to check the condition of his assigned field.
"The southern half-acre was the most severely damaged because it was exposed the earliest and I used it as a sacrifice, drawing all the birds here."
"The other few acres, however, suffered very minor losses."
Zhao Xing walked around, checking, and breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Looking at the scarecrows again, only eight remained, each with various damages. If not for these eight scarecrows reaching 'First-Turn' strength, they would have collapsed long ago.
"It's over, I can rest now." Zhao Xing waved his hand, and the remaining eight scarecrows lost their luster and fell by the field.
The heat was unbearable, and after an hour of intense battle, Zhao Xing felt physically and mentally exhausted, wishing he could fall asleep immediately.
All around were the wails of the clerks.
Because this assessment was much more difficult than in the past, many people's assigned fields suffered heavy losses.
The vast majority lost more than half, and some even had their fields completely devoured.
"More than a month of hard work, just gone like that?"
"Damn those Grain-Eating Birds, how hateful!"
"Alas, whose fault is it but our own lack of skill? We'll just have to wait for the make-up exam."
"The make-up exam will at most get a C+, which is just a pass, and it will waste energy. How will we cope with the next assessment?"
"How can a Ninth-Rank Official be so easy to become? The Sifu Bureau is considered good, with only over five hundred people competing for three to five spots. Little do you know, for a Ninth-Rank Commander in the East Lake Army, one spot has three to five thousand people competing!"
"Don't even mention joining the army. For a Craftsman Official in the Heavenly Works Workshop, nearly a thousand people compete."
"I wish I were a girl. I heard the competition in the Weaving Workshop isn't that fierce."
"Ugh~ You're too spineless."
"..."
Just then, the sky suddenly became covered with dark clouds, and rain began to fall.
"Pitter-patter~"
The raindrops were sparse and small at first, but soon became large and dense.
The temperature in the air also dropped sharply.
Zhao Xing sat down on the field, letting the rainwater wash over him.
The shower came quickly and left just as quickly.
Clearly, this was human-controlled.
After giving the clerks a quarter-hour of rest to recover, the sky suddenly cleared, the dark clouds turned into white clouds, and it returned to a normal Minor Heat day.
A flying boat descended from the clouds to the grassland. Three figures stood at the bow: Chen Shijie, the chief official of the Sifu Bureau, and the two deputy officials, Gao Linong and Tang Wanchun.
"They're here. They're going to announce the results of the Minor Heat assessment." Zhao Xing perked up and moved closer to the grassland.