"If we really give him first-grade, others will definitely say we have something fishy going on..."
One examiner nodded, "Without others saying it, I myself feel there’s a fishy business."
"It’s a pity... The formation painting is truly well done, I am simply in awe..."
Everyone felt somewhat regretful.
Yet, the examiner surnamed Zhao said in a deep voice, "Let’s give him first-grade."
The other Formation Masters were taken aback.
The middle-aged examiners frowned and said:
"If we give him first-grade, we will surely be doubted and provoke criticism, and if Heaven Shu Pavilion investigates, we will be in trouble."
"Besides, he’s too young; there will be plenty of opportunities for him in the future, there’s no need to rush this moment."
However, the examiner surnamed Zhao said, "Not giving him first-grade will bring us even bigger trouble."
The middle-aged examiners frowned, "Brother Zhao, what do you mean by this?"
The examiner surnamed Zhao slowly said, "As everyone knows, to learn formation methods, one must have a mentor. Without a famous mentor guiding, one will surely find it difficult to make any progress."
"At thirteen, to be at a first-grade level, he must have been taught by a master."
"Who this master is, we do not know, but their identity and background, their expertise in formations, must be very profound; we can’t afford to offend them..."
"That is just one thing," the examiner surnamed Zhao held up a finger.
"Secondly," he continued, raising a second finger and sighed, "This child, we also cannot afford to offend."
Everyone was startled, then gradually came to understand.
At thirteen, to have a first-grade formation level, he was extraordinarily gifted.
If one day he became a Second Grade, or even higher grade formation master, remembered their enmity, dug up their past actions, and pursued their responsibility, who could endure that?
"Moreover, there’s another point."
The examiner surnamed Zhao added, "The talent of this child in formations is even more frightening than you now believe."
Everyone frowned, not understanding.
The examiner surnamed Zhao was silent for a long time, and with a bitter sigh, he said:
"During the examination, he spent most of his time sleeping..."
All the examiners were astonished in their expressions.
"Sleeping?"
"Inconceivable, he actually slept during the examination?"
Seeing that they didn’t understand, the examiner surnamed Zhao said helplessly:
"Which is to say, the first-grade formations he needed for the assessment, he completed in a very short period of time; then, out of sheer boredom, he slept until the end of the exam..."
As the examiners pondered carefully and grasped the implication, they all felt their hearts clench and a chill ran through them.
What kind of person was this?
Was this even humanly possible?
Where did this evil monster pop up from?
"Therefore," the examiner surnamed Zhao looked around and said in a deep voice, "we must, award him first-grade!"
The examiners looked at each other, all speechless and silent, with nothing to say.
By now, this first-grade, it had to be given whether they liked it or not.
An examiner sighed and murmured:
"Thirteen years old, he’s probably the youngest first-grade formation master in the Black Mountain State Boundary in a thousand years..."
...
The next day when the results were released, Mo Hua saw his own name on the first-grade list.
Mo Hua felt a surge of joy in his heart.
"Tongxian City, Mo Hua, first-grade formation master."
The list only showed the place of origin and name, without other information.
Mo Hua didn’t shout "I’ve passed!" either.
Therefore, the formation masters around him didn’t know that he had passed the assessment and become a first-grade formation master.
After the initial elation, Mo Hua felt it was unexpected, yet after some thought, not unexpected at all.
What was unexpected was that there really wasn’t any foul play.
Unsurprisingly, the test was indeed too simple; becoming a first-grade Formation Master was truly not difficult for him now.
His father, Mo Shan, was genuinely overjoyed from the bottom of his heart.
Although he had long known that Mo Hua had the ability of a first-grade Formation Master, receiving official recognition from the Taoist Court held a different significance.