Chapter 536 - 232: The National Rankings Are Announced, Who Under Heaven Doesn’t Know You

Countless citizens of Yanjing stepped out of their homes, curiosity piqued, and looked up at the sky.

Immediately after, brilliant streams of light shot up from all corners of the city’s outskirts, like inverted waterfalls.

Upon reaching a certain altitude, these beams of light abruptly fanned out in all directions, weaving through one another to form an immeasurably vast, translucent screen.

Resplendent with vibrant colors, it slowly unfurled to cover the entire sky.

"Look at the sky!"

"It’s... the Heavenly Screen!"

"What’s happening? Is it a fissure invasion?"

"Don’t be ridiculous! Didn’t you see the notice? The city gave us a half-day off just to watch this!"

Countless people in Yanjing poured out of office buildings and apartment complexes, taking to the streets. They gazed up at the magnificent spectacle above, their faces brimming with irrepressible curiosity and excitement.

A little girl with pigtails, perched on her father’s shoulders, pointed a chubby finger at the sky and asked in a sweet, childish voice, "Daddy, what’s that? It’s so pretty, like a rainbow."

The man held his daughter steady, his face filled with pride and admiration.

"Sweetheart, that’s called the Heavenly Screen."

"In a little while, you’ll see lots and lots of big brothers and sisters appear up there."

"They’re the top one hundred students from this year’s college entrance exam. And in the future, they’ll be the great heroes who protect you, and all of us."

「Firewood Martial Hall, Yanjing Sub-Palace.」

Inside the Martial Hall, the scene was just as novel and bustling.

A notice from the higher-ups had given all Xinhuo members a half-day off, something that was completely unprecedented.

And now, the legendary Heavenly Screen had actually appeared.

Although everyone vaguely guessed that this whole spectacle was probably for this year’s Martial Arts College Entrance Exam results announcement, it had never been such a massive affair in previous years.

Long Bohan was also mixed in with the crowd. He walked out of the Martial Hall’s main gate and looked up at the magnificent light show in the sky, a thousand emotions swirling in his heart.

Just then, someone bumped his shoulder, not too lightly and not too hard.

He turned to see Dong Dongchen holding a small streaming device, filming the Heavenly Screen while winking at him.

Dong Dongchen skillfully panned the device, capturing the surrounding environment and the view of the sky, all while chattering away.

"Brothers!"

"I’m currently in the heart of Yanjing, right at the entrance of the Firewood Martial Hall headquarters! See this? This spot, this angle—it’s absolutely the best view for watching the Heavenly Screen announcement, and there’s barely anyone here!"

"What’s more, for today’s stream, we’ve specially invited a heavyweight guest! C’mon, Old Long, don’t just stand there. Say hi to the brothers in the chat!"

A flicker of resignation crossed Long Bohan’s face, but when the dark lens of the camera turned on him, he instantly switched to his professional smile and gave a wave.

"Hello everyone, I’m Long Bohan."

Dong Dongchen immediately jumped in, "Let me give you all a grand introduction! This guy next to me is no ordinary person! He’s the Deputy Head of the Recruitment Department at the Yanjing Sub-Palace of the Firewood Martial Hall! His rank is already Deputy Hall Master! The man’s got a limitless future, brothers!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the livestream’s bullet chat was instantly spammed with a single word.

[Connections!]

[Connections +1]

Thanks to signing Lin Ye back then, Long Bohan’s current status was a world apart from what it used to be.

He was no longer a minor deacon who had to run errands everywhere, but had been genuinely promoted to Deputy Hall Master.

Almost everyone took it for granted that as long as the current Hall Master, Wang Jingcheng, took one more step up, Long Bohan was the undisputed choice for the next Hall Master.

Just as Dong Dongchen and Long Bohan were bantering and chatting idly with the viewers, the magnificent Heavenly Screen, which had been hanging motionless in the sky, finally began to change!

VMMMM—

The entire Heavenly Screen instantly transformed from a cascade of iridescent light into a dazzling, brilliant gold!

Golden light stretched for miles, auspicious energies streamed forth—the visual effects were cranked to the max, instantly capturing the attention of the entire city.

Countless people looked up. Within that sea of golden light, a line of giant text formed from pure light slowly materialized.

The font was majestic and grand, clearly visible from every corner of Yanjing.

[This year’s National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam has concluded. Now, let us welcome this year’s top one hundred prodigies to the Golden Roll of Honor!]

The moment the words faded, a grand and stirring melody resounded throughout the entire city!

In the center of everyone’s vision, a gigantic, pure-gold list began to slowly unroll from the top of the Heavenly Screen.

As the first name appeared, a human silhouette materialized in sync on another section of the screen to the side.

[100th Place: Zhao Hongyu, Yuzhou Hengshui City. Total Score: 789.5]

One by one, names appeared on the list, and silhouettes materialized alongside them.

Watching the names shimmering with golden light on the Heavenly Screen, and the personal combat highlights that played as each name appeared, Long Bohan would be lying if he said he wasn’t the least bit envious.

His own exam scores back in the day had been outstanding, but it was nothing compared to this kind of treatment.

Making it onto this nationally-watched Golden Roll was truly a momentous event, enough to bring glory to one’s ancestors and be a source of lifelong honor!

Just then, someone in the livestream’s bullet chat suddenly mentioned a familiar name.

[Huh? Speaking of which, I just thought of someone. That Goblin dude hasn’t been online much since he broke that record.]

[Yeah! If you do the math, he should be taking the Martial Arts College Entrance Exam this year, right?]

[Chen, how’d that guy do today? Wonder if he has a chance to make the list?]